Catching up
Overdue for an update, so I'll try and keep this -- well, maybe not brief as such, but at least a list of things each one of which is brief. Or something like that.
- My trip up north was surprisingly un-traumatic. Aidan slept through almost the entire car ride -- clearly, the night-driving approach was a good one. And kettunainen and I got along pretty well for the most part. She and optimystik retrieved the kayaks, and then left the next night, and I stayed through until Monday to have some more time with my parents and away from the city, both of which are important to me. I've really, really missed being up north -- it had been two years!
- I am also going to miss the kayaks. My one regret about this weekend was that I didn't have the chance to have one last kayak outing before they went away. I had discovered on the trip we initially took them up north on, a few years back, that I love kayaking. But I know there are places where kayaks can be rented, even in the city. Someone mentioned one on the Humber River a while back. I think I need to do that -- anyone else interested?
- Big surprise when I got back -- my apartment was almost unrecognizable! Well, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it had been considerably tidied and organized by the_moogie, who as far as I knw had only been going to stop by Saturday morning to walk Kiska and feed all the animals, since forestweaver would be house-sitting the rest of the time. But apparently she got inspired while she was there, and an inspired Virgo can be a frightening thing. She even started in on staining the wooden shelves I had gotten from nocturnalia et al. I am in awe. Also, very grateful.
- I continue to expand my cycling horizons, even though the fact that I now have to wrestle the bike up and down stairs and keep it in my apartment makes going riding a little more daunting than before. (The landlord told me that keeping it down in the front hall of the building was a violation of fire regulations. Poo.).
I biked to nonstrvngartist's place on Tuesday and to the Dufferin Grove Farmer's Market today. Ironically, the latter was more challenging even though it was a shorter distance -- most of the way was on a relatively busy street with no bike lanes (Dovercourt), and on the way back it was mostly uphill. But I still did it, only walking the bike for the hilliest parts. I am getting to be a little less scared of riding on busy streets, though I still choose quieter streets and/or streets with bike lanes where possible.
BTW, my bike now has spiffy folding baskets attached to the rear carrier like Optimystik has, courtesy of my parents who wanted to replace a birthday gift they had gotten me that did not work out (for a variety of complicated reasons). Also, a little holder for my Sigg water bottle. I attached both myself, relatively successfully if you don't count the fact that I put the first basket on backwards and didn't realize that until I folded it shut and realized it was now impossible to unfold. Oops. Was eventually able to detach it and re-attach it properly, and thankfully I at least realized it was backwards before I'd put the second one on. The whole process was fairly arduous and involved a lot of swearing, but I'm still glad I did it myself. And the baskets proved most useful for the market today.
- Speaking of the market -- it was so great today! The one at Dufferin Grove is about twice the size of the one near me (which I missed last weekend due to being up north, thus the outing to Dufferin today) and has a more carnival-like atmosphere, with several stands of ready-to-eat food as well as the usual stands, plus musicians, puppet shows, etc.
I continue to be amazed at the awesomeness of the food you can get at farmer's markets, not to mention how cheap a lot of it is. I am eating all kinds of stuff these days that I never used to because it was either unaffordable or hard to find at supermarkets. At the Fun Guy Farms stand (one of my favourites, partly for the name) I got enough oyster mushrooms -- of a rare pink variety -- to make a decent-sized main dish for only $2. Chowing down on an entire plate of roasted oyster mushrooms is not the sort of thing I used to do before, but now it's not uncommon, because they're really nicely affordable at the market, not to mention incredibly fresh.
A couple of weeks ago when I had missed the market I bought some oyster mushrooms at Loblaws -- for nearly twice the price I would have paid to Fun Guy Farms -- and they didn't taste nearly as good, probably because they'd spent a lot longer in transit and storage. Fresh really is better, and the fact that it's all organic and mostly local is a big plus. I am finding and trying vegetables I'd never even seen before, and generally spending less than I would at Loblaws (well, at least for the fresh produce part -- if you hit ChocoSol, Forbes Wild Foods, or the sheep cheese people, be prepared to wonder what just happened to all your money).
Today's best find (apart from pink oyster mushrooms for $2) was these yellow cherry tomatoes at the Thorpe's stand that are insanely, incredibly, flavourful. I was checking out some crazy-looking heirloom tomato varieties (which were also great, especially the really dark red ones), and overheard the woman behind the counter saying something about the yellow cherry tomatoes being like candy. I asked if I could try one, and she said sure (another thing I like about farmer's markets -- they're generally quite happy to let you nibble on the merchandise before buying).
So I ate one and oh my gods -- I am a fresh tomato junkie at the best of times, but no tomatoes have ever tasted like that! I think my eyes went wide and I sort of squeaked a little, and before I'd even swallowed the one I was eating, I grabbed a box of them and pushed it over by the other ones I was getting. The woman just laughed -- I guess she'd seen that reaction a lot. I don't even know to describe the taste, except maybe by saying it was like a cross between the ripest, most flavourful tomatoes you've ever tasted, and some kind of luscious tropical fruit. They were seriously sweet enough that you could almost have them for dessert. If you are at a farmer's market where Thorpe's has a stand any time soon and see yellow cherry tomatoes, buy them!
Anyway, enough gushing. If any of you (who live in Toronto, anyway) haven't acquired the farmer's market habit yet, you really need to give it a try. They're cropping up (so to speak) everywhere now -- see http://tfmn.ca/ for more info including a list of all the markets.
- The only down side of the excursion: fucking mosquitoes! I got at least 4 or 5 bites just while doing my shopping, even though Kettu and her friend who I ran into as I was leaving had gotten no bites despite hanging out in the park for an hour after doing theirs! There is no justice. I don't know why I'm such a damn mosquito magnet -- I don't eat bananas very often (which I've heard attract them), but as far back as I can remember I have seemed to be irresistibly appealing to mosquitoes. I can be standing in a crowd of people outdoors, none of whom are even noticing that there are mosquitoes about at all, and I'll end up looking like I have chicken pox. The other night I got two bites while stopped at a red light on my bike, because I was near Casa Loma which is surrounded by parkland, and the mostly cool, damp summer we've had has made every park a mosquito factory. If I weren't concerned about the toxicity of DEET, I'd be wearing it daily, since I nearly always get bitten while walking Kiska through the little park near me. I really wish citronella or other herbal repellents actually worked...
I think I need a trained bat I can keep as a pet and take with me whenever I go out. Or several, maybe. A whole flock of bats surrounding me every time I leave the house! Though I suppose I would have to be constantly explaining to people that no, it really isn't just a goth fashion statement. And I guess the whole nocturnal thing with bats might be an issue (maybe if I trained them to drink coffee?). Also, rabies. But still... *sigh*
- One more thing everyone should check out if they haven't already: thrifthorror Really, where else are you going to read comments like "Nauseous bondage ghost for the win!"? I don't think any other community on LJ has ever made me both laugh out loud and recoil in terror quite as often as that one.
- I am sure there are more things I was intending to write here, but I can't remember them now. Possibly this means I should go to bed soon.