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hummus is a good word: march fantab

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 7-13, 2010

WHAT I’M READING: Wayson Choy’s The Jade Peony AND The Bible in French.

WHAT ELSIE’S READING: Olivia. Remember how we made the shift to stories instead of those nasty learning books? The girl is so on board, laughing at all the right places. I love this kid’s sense of humour

WHAT I’M WATCHING: A Serious Man. Another Cohen Brothers movie, and totally excellent. The lead actor Michael Stuhlbarg is wonderful. (I am full of strong kind of vague adjectives that will compel you I’m sure.) Also, Studio 60—a show I started watching in California, which interestingly also stars Monsieur Stuhlbarg. In the first, he’s a hipster television director; in the latter, a dejected cuckold-professor. He is convincing as both!

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Excerpts from The 4 hour Work Week by Tim Ferris, romantically read by Simon! This book is a blend of goal setting, having uncomfortable conversations which move you into new terrain and automatizing your income, all of which Simon and I intend to do. Yes ma’am. That way we can live in Santa Fe for a month carefree. Y’all can visit. Please bring treats.

WHAT I’M WEARING: The usual, except suddenly my jeans feel tighter. I think my rediscovery of food after a week long juice fast caught up with me. Big sigh.

WHAT I’M EATING: Sautéed vegetables with coconut oil, garlic and ginger. You can make anything delicious with that combination. Oh, and healthy cookies which I adapted slightly to make even healthier. They’re from a cookbook (name evades me) which advocates that healthy, even organic food can and should be accessible to everyone—a thinking I appreciate. Everyone should have access to good food! Amen.
Breaky Bikkies...that's what we call them.

1 cup of agave (instead of 2 cups of brown sugar as dictated by the recipe.)
1 cup of butter (don’t need that much unless you’re going for super crispy)
1 tsp vanilla

3 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup spelt flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder

11/2 cups assorted nuts/dried fruit/chocolate chunks mixture.

Here’s the part of the recipe I don’t understand: it says refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and then roll into balls and freeze before baking.

Bakers in the house? Why bake from freezing? Do tell.

WHAT I’M ENJOYING: My daughter. Always my daughter. What a little person. This morning Simon and I started singing to her via a giraffe and lion puppet and she started doing this side dance groove to our song. I LOVE that she’s a dancer! Groove baby. Always groove. Plus, I think she said ‘hummus.’

WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Raw granola dehydrating in the dehydrator. Duh. Why, what are you sniffing?


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the grandma wins

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Speaking of February triumphs, my friend Kristy got married in February, and this is a picture of Elsie and Grandma celebrating. Apparently Elsie gets all serious at celebrations! In fact, she has a very serious side. For a couple of weeks people would smile and say hello to Elsie, at which point she would emphatically and very seriously reply, “No!” Actually kind of an awkward thing—when your child adamantly rejects all the nice old ladies that want to give her head a little cuddle. ‘Cause as I’ve mentioned before, not everyone has a sense of humour about a toddler’s moods.

Anyway, at the wedding Grandma was one of the people to whom Elsie said “Yes!”

elsie and gramma

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triumphs and sorrows

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

What’s a blog? I’m so out of practice. What day is it? Month? Year? Everything’s a blur. I’ve forgotten what it means to write. To have things to say.

But the fact that my computer even started (it was threatening to not) is a sign that I need to remember. Soooo….the last two weeks of my life can be summed up as follows:

A Series of Triumphs and Sorrows.

Triumph: My mother officially completed her thesis. Now all she has to do is defend the sucker. A triumph for the whole family. And yes, a thesis is definitely a sucker, even if its subject matter is a very eloquent and complex poet. Ask any PhD.

Sorrowful retort: Our mortgage application was rejected. Yes, Simon and I had dreamed ourselves into a sweet little house within walking distance to sweet little coffee shops only to be cruelly spurned. Back to the basement we go.

Triumph: Elsie said ‘you’re welcome’ clear as day. My child is brilliant and oh so fun. How can one be sorrowful with such a gift jumping on my bed making funny voices through ‘Genry’ the Gorilla puppet? Impossible.

But then…

Sorrowful retort: I gave up coffee. I am now on day seven and frantically searching for a substitution to my addiction.

Triumph: The sun came out.

Sorrowful retort: All my bad encounters with humanity of late, leaving me disillusioned and weary. Getting more specific would only bore. What gives? Why doesn’t everyone think and act in ways that give me joy? C’mon.

Triumph: Simon got a new hair cut: a mini mohawk. Pictures to come. AND I dig it. Is all.

How was your February?

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babies, biceps and believability

Friday, February 12, 2010

This is Elsie in Saskatchewan one year ago. You might remember my posts about freezing my buns off on the sunny streets of Regina? If not, I refer you to here. Framing Elsie’s head are Simon’s pert biceps. That’s all. I’m off to pour my heart out before strangers. I embrace my vulnerability!

Baby and Biceps

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life with the letter ‘k’

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Dear Elsie,

You are very nearly a year and a half, and I feel quite panicked about chronicling the time since my last letter.

Daddy is more calm. And so wise. Every time I say I’m sad because you’re growing up so fast, he is quick to say, ‘No sadness! Just enjoy.’ What a lovely perspective. So the fact that I never managed to get the video camera out to record you saying ‘meow’ with a melodious lilt is not sad. It was just a beautiful moment in your development which I release. I feel so mature. (Now I should probably go rail at the Gods for my loss, ’cause how is being that mature possibly interesting? Just wondering.)

But back to all the other bits I have been itching to record. For starters, all of a sudden you find rhyme funny. So the book about the twenty-six bunnies with rhyming names makes you hysterical. I totally agree. Zed going to bed is funny. Ute sleeping with fruit. Funnier still.

half an Elsie

Not to mention your ever expanding vocabulary, all ending with the letter ‘k.’ Let me be specific: milk, walk, book, stuck, truck and then, of course, bu…aka bus. The ’s’ sound is still in development. But boy will that be liberating when the ’s’ flows off your lips, because you certainly do love buses (a mere sighting has the capacity to completely transform your mood), and things in the plural form. Like more than one raisin. More than one banana chip. More than one marker. More than one tampon. (Those things are neat to chew on, eh?)

And then of course I should mention some of our encounters: the crossing guards you charm with your waving; the store clerks who delight in your laughter; the servers who respond to your indoor snow angels with a sense of humour (’cause Hanks on Church street has a kick-ass ceiling worthy of your eagle eye inspection.) Then there are those who don’t appreciate the nuances of your personality. Like the woman at our local coffee shop who said ‘hi.’ You being on the tired side responded with, ‘No,’ at which point the woman got all sore. One would have hoped that a person’s self-esteem was sufficiently rooted at the ripe age of seventy-five to be immune to a baby’s moods. But in this case, apparently not. She turned to me on the way out, ‘You’re a saint. One day she will be a treasure.’

We redeemed the moment with an sucker, ’cause everything is better with a sucker when you’re 18 months. And actually 29.

A treasure one day? Oh Elsie Pants, you are a treasure now. Daddy and I actually lie in bed and talk about what a treasure you are. Is that sappy? Does our devotion embarrass you? Nah! Let’s just enjoy this moment with the rhyming and the buses and your hot pink snowsuit almost black from the many surfaces it has seen, and of course, the letter ‘k.’

Love love, Mama

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Cleansing with God and Strong Coffee

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Let’s start this week with some photos. And a theme for the rest of February. Some themes in my life: mothering, auditions, caffeine, cleansing, procrastinating, ‘wanting,’ God…

Soooooo…which one to choose? How about “Cleansing with God and Strong Coffee: An Important Paradox.” That sounds evocative and extremely original. I just came up with that. Right now. On the spot. Wow. Go me. After two really strong coffees and a kelp noodle salad. Paradoxical, I’d say.

Now’s it’s up to you to observe my attention to this complex theme. Bring it, Feb.

Reflection Fun
Elsie Tortures Frannie
Serious Baby

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fffffantabulous

Friday, January 29, 2010

FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 13-19, 2009

WHAT I’M READING: The Sedona Method, which is all about releasing feelings so you don’t have to carry around so much angst. Not that I carry around a lot of angst or anything…not me. Oh no. Never. Excuse me while I go release those lies.

WHAT ELSIE’S READING: A brand new book that I picked out myself. It’s about Olivia the Mouse, and extremely sweet. I got really tired of all the teachy-county-learny books. Just give me a fucking story. A fucking story for fuck sake. Yeah, I am vulgar today. What the heck is with my potty mouth? I’m still releasing toxins from my week long cleanse is what.

WHAT I’M WATCHING: The beginning of 50 Dead Men Walking, a movie my dad brought home about the Irish Protestant/Catholic conflict. He didn’t think it would be too intense. Um. Dad, that was the most intense movie I’ve ever seen. My heritage is messed up.

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: The new Norah Jones: The Fall. It’s quite lovely. More exciting: Elsie loves it too, which means we have been Wiggles free in the car for one week. That is nothing short of fucking miraculous! Sorry…more toxins.

WHAT I’M WEARING: Layers. That way when I tell Simon that I’m cold, he can’t say with disdain, “Is it because you’re not wearing enough clothes? Like, for example, SOCKS?” I certainly am wearing SOCKS today, husband! And a long sleeved thermal kind of shirtish thingy. Like if I wanted to go skiing, I would be sweating from the ‘chaleur’ of this ensemble.

WHAT I’M EATING:: Solid food. Texture is such a lovely thing. Drink juice for week and you will be all over anything with crunch. More specifically I am eating raw hummus. So can you if you:
Soak raw sunflower seeds over night. Grind them up, along with one zucchini cut into chunks and 3 cloves garlic. Add 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp tahini (ground sesame seeds), 2 tbsp lemon, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp curry powder, 1 tsp sea salt. Approximately. Enjoy. Spread on nori and make your own ’sushi’ or just eat with celery sticks.

WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Elsie’s dancing. She side shuffles in a circle and it’s delightful. To every kind of music. Including the heavy metal kind.

WHAT I’M SNIFFING: This awesome hand cream which Simon got me for Christmas. It’s called ‘ULTIMATE STRENGTH HAND SALVE’ by KIEHL’S. It’s kind of medicinal smelling in a natural way, if you can imagine such a smell. I apply it at least 25 times a day.

p.s. Hey look, my friend Steve found the TVO ad:
makes you think-tvo ad

Okay, now go enjoy your Friday. Tonight Simon and I are having date night at a communal table with 20 other people. Sounds romantic don’t you think?


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out, out, damn toxins

Thursday, January 21, 2010

I’m on day four of a cleanse right now. I won’t get into all the specifics. But suffice it to say my sugar binge over Christmas caught up with me. So for the last four days I have been eating raw veggies and a little fruit and juicing extraordinary concoctions (and when I say extraordinary I don’t mean ‘fabulous’) of kale, spinach, garlic, wheatgrass and the like. It helps if I think of the brew as cold soup instead of juice. Further, I haven’t had a coffee in three days. (I cheated on day one with an espresso. Simon made me do it.) So all in all there’s not much to live for. All of my enjoyable and inspiring routines have been disturbed. As such, I no longer have anything to say. My mind is vacuous. I know that lots of people are creative, and I’m certain that at one point creativity also abided in me, but in my current state I can’t fathom HOW. Or WHAT.

Frankly, I’m scared.

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my enlarged face

Monday, January 18, 2010

Here’s a TVO print ad I did a while back, which people keep sending me random messages about. I saw your face at Union station…I saw you on the Go train—your face. One of my friends apparently went up to the large picture of my face and started having a little chat with me. People thought she was crazy. I also think that sounds a wee bit crazy, but mostly just fun and unselfconscious and definitely subject matter for a monologue or an entire play. Kind of like the woman who comes into a bakery my dad frequents with her rabbit…in a stroller. She’s practicing motherhood? I agree, Rabbit Woman. Hands-on learning is the only way.

p.s. If you’re the next person to see my face, can you send me a photo of the ad in its entirety? Merci et merci.

TVO Ad

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1st fantabulous of 2010. i know.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 10-16, 2010

WHAT I’M READING: Chapters of The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge, and The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. A very nice combination of easy to absorb brain science and light but not too light romance.

WHAT ELSIE’S READING: She’s really into MY FIRST BOOK OF WORDS. That may or may not be the title. Regardless, she points, I speak: “That’s a giraffe. And that’s a zebra. And that’s a giraffe. And that’s a giraffe. And once again, that’s the giraffe.”

Have you ever wondered why children’s books are so replete with animals they never see? Perplexing isn’t it. Like how many of our city born and bred children have much contact with cows…pigs…giraffes? Why don’t we teach them about banks and concrete? Everyone ponder.

WHAT I’M WATCHING: Well I think we covered that in my first post-Christmas post. Basically lots of movies. Now that Christmas season is done, I’m doing nothing but work. Oh, so much work. Just working myself to the bone. Workaholic is me. On sooooooo many exciting projects (I’m pumping myself up right now). Except I did manage to catch ten minutes of the new Kids In The Hall. Not immediately funny to me. But I would like to meet the people who find it hilarious. Maybe my friend Tim? Tim? Are you in the cyberspace? What say you Tim? Teach me to laugh.

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO: Jian Ghomeshi. I really enjoy you, Jian. I’m sorry for saying you had no balls a couple months back. Would you like to have me on your show? Just wondering? We could talk about…my unidentified exciting projects. And maybe you could be awestruck by me. That’s all. It would do wonders for my self-esteem. Okay. Check in later.

WHAT I’M WEARING: I got a really great grey and white plaid shirt for Christmas which I like to wear. As often as possible. It’s called ‘THE SHIRT.’ Seriously. That’s what it’s called. In fact, they wanted it called that so bad, they sewed a huge ass label that says ‘THE SHIRT’ to the bottom of the shirt so everyone knows what they’re looking at? I decided to remove the eyesore in an obsessive moment without getting the proper equipment. Now I have a huge ass label dangling (instead of firmly attached) and a huge ass hole. Bollocks. Where is Simon when I need him? Why is he not at home taking care of all of our, and more importantly, my domestic needs? ‘Cause let me tell you, the man sews.

WHAT I’M EATING: Proteins with veggies and carbs with veggies. Apparently those combinations are easier on the digestive system. That means no eggs and toast, which is sad. Because you know how much I like toast, and then eggs and toast, well that’s just lovely.

So here’s a carbs and veggies recipe that you might enjoy:

In a soup pot sauté onion, garlic and fresh ginger with coconut oil. The coconut oil is key to a delicious flavour. Add a whole bunch of cabbage. Continue your sauté-ing. Then add water and a couple bouillon cubes (depending on the amount of water). I like organic veggie bouillon cubes if you were wondering. And probably if you’re bothering to read this wordy recipe, you care. Finally add a whole bunch of cooked quinoa.

It’s a very delicate but flavourful soup. And you will feel full.

WHAT I’M ENJOYING: Elsie crying herself into a frenzy because she’s over tired. NOT!!! It’s opposite day. And I’m channeling my grade four self. Not. Not. Not.

WHAT I’M SNIFFING: Elsie’s head which has a faint whiff of her grandma’s perfume. It’s nice. So much better than the smell of Frannie’s shit or bus fumes or moldy beans. I’m just sayin’.


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