….for more information on how to participate in this week’s odd ball challenge check out Cee’s Photography
A fish toilet seat, anyone?
Cee’s Odd Ball Challenge – Week 28
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Category Archives: Toronto
New Flower (Sept. 3, 2014) – Morning Glory
….one of my earliest childhood memories was the trellis of morning glories that my parents planted at our first home
Things That Can’t Be Carried on a Bike
….I follow a blog Urban Simplicity that regularly posts Things That Can Be Carried on a Bike
Well last week we discovered something that definitely doesn’t travel well on a bike. As you may know it was my birthday and my husband was in charge of the meal and the birthday cake.
The meal was a fantastic five course Indian spread that K made completely from scratch. It was fabulous and there was enough left over for another meal for two. The only problem was with the cake. My husband is also a good baker but time ran out so he rode his bike to the local Italian bakery to buy a German Black Forest cake. I know….Indian, Italian, German?
Anyway San Remo makes wonderful birthday cakes and it’s always our go to place when we don’t have time to bake. K didn’t think carrying the cake would be problem because he has a flat carrier on the front of his bike and he was able to strap it in place so it wouldn’t slide around.
I guess the ride must have been a little (or a lot) bumpy because when he got home and opened the box this is what he saw:
As you can see he was a little embarrassed. No need. It was delicious just the same.
Have you experienced anything that CAN’T be carried on a bike?
Harvesting the Garden – Part 2
….all summer we’ve been enjoying lettuce, beans and zucchini from the garden
On Sunday we started to harvest our root vegetables from our boxes. We were pleasantly surprised at how well our carrots have grown. We planted red, orange, yellow and white carrots. The red ones we discovered are orange inside so if you scrape them they don’t look any different from the orange variety. 
We’ve been pulling the beets for a couple of weeks but we had a few left so out they came along with the the few red onions that we had planted. I’ve been roasting the beets in the skins until they’re tender. Then the skin just pops off when cool enough to handle. I slice them, sprinkle a little vinegar on them to refresh them and when we’re ready to eat them we drizzle olive oil on them and season with a little salt and pepper. Delicious!
Now we have cabbage, Brussels sprouts and Jerusalem artichokes left in the garden along with a few more carrots. I think the zucchini is done for the year and we uprooted our pea and bean plants. We may throw in a few more bean seeds and see what happens. If we have a warm autumn we might get another bean crop.
Cheers!
New Flower (Aug. 25, 2014) – Hosta Blooms
….late in the summer these great shade plants produce delicate flowers
New Flower (Aug. 21, 2014) – Burdock
…..technically not at flower but this burr is said to be the inspiration for velcro
New Flower (Aug. 19, 2014) – Rose of Sharon
….my Rose of Sharon is starting to bloom
New Flower (Aug. 18, 2014) – Thistle
Image
New Flower (Aug. 8, 2014) – Passion Flower
….this bloom lasts only one day
My First Ever Caribbean Carnival Experience
…..or as it is more commonly known, Caribana Toronto
Today my husband and I got on our bikes and headed east toward the city. Trust me when I say that there was no better way to get around today than on your bike. The Gardiner is still under construction and Lakeshore Blvd. was closed for the Caribana Parade.
We decided to make a number of stops on our journey today. First, we parked our bikes at the Humber Bay Farmers’ Market and picked up some kale, flowers for my aunt and the best samosas in the city.
We continued along the bike path, heading east and turned north on Windemere and then east again along the Queensway. Traffic was already backing up and we passed numerous cars as we sailed through on the bike lanes. When the bike lanes ended we were at our destination anyway so our trip to the hospital was smooth sailing all the way.
Our second stop was at St. Joe’s to visit my aunt. We gave her the small bouquet of flowers that we picked up at the market and we spent about an hour with her. I’ve really been enjoying these chats with her. Outside the hospital the sounds from the Carnival were bouncing off the walls but inside, especially in her room it was very quiet.
When we returned to our bikes after the visit my husband was having second thoughts about going to the parade. I convinced him to humour me for at least a 30 minute stay down by the parade. We headed west and then south towards Sunnyside Park. Lakeshore Blvd. was like a parking lot as people waited to get onto the Queensway.
As soon as we hit the park I suggested that we sit in the shade and eat our lunch of samosas and mango chutney. They were delicious. After cleaning up we got back on the bikes but now even moving on the bikes was slowed down by the pedestrian traffic heading toward the parade. To my husband’s credit (he hates crowds) he offered to park the bikes and sit with them while I made my way to the parade so that I could get some photographs.
I didn’t have to walk far but I do think that most of the parade had already passed by but there were still some interesting floats and sights to be seen. At one point I found myself on the other side of the fence where most people were standing. There were other people there as well and I was able to get pretty close to the floats. On my way back I realized that I had walked into a secure area, which the police were barring people from entering. Like I said earlier I wasn’t the only one and no one said anything to me or for that matter anyone else about being where I was.
The place was jumping and the music was so loud that when I stood in front of the speakers I could feel the sound bouncing off my chest. It was a party and the women of all ages, shapes and sizes were scantily dressed in feathery, glittery and shiny bits of fabric. The colours were amazing.
Along the parade route people were selling souvenirs, consisting of Caribbean flags, umbrellas with flag motifs, and t-shirts. Vendors were also selling island food and a couple of men were peeling stalks of sugar cane with large knives for people to purchase and eat.
The parade is only one of many events that happen this weekend. The real party starts later today. As for me I’m happy to have finally experienced a little bit of Caribana and I won’t be fighting my way through traffic to participate in any of the remaining festivities. According to Strava, we rode for 20k today and supposedly I burned off 2300 calories. Is that even possible?????
