…..a great video that Dorothy from Scotland shared with me this week
Dorothy from Jings and Things sent me an email this week with the link to this video. It looks like Scotland, in the very near future, will be joining the ever growing number of countries in the world that recognizes same sex marriages. Earlier this week the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that legally married same-sex couples should get the same federal benefits as heterosexual couples and cleared the way for same-sex marriage in California. We can only hope that the remaining 37 states will give same sex couples the same rights.
A few months ago I shared with you the video of New Zealand’s parliament passing the bill that recognizes same sex marriages and how the visitor’s gallery erupted spontaneously into song.
My son lives in the Netherlands, so whenever he posts anything on Facebook I have to check it out. Today I came across a video that he posted on YouTube. I’m not sure what he’s cooking but he does seem to have a flair for the flambé.
My entire family seems to have the cooking gene. My father loved to cook and for a short time he and my mother had their own catering business. For 17 years I taught Family Studies and demonstrated cooking techniques to my young students. When our youngest daughter expressed an interest in becoming a chef my husband supported her by cooking along side her and together they experimented with new recipes and techniques. Even after she decided that cooking was not what she wanted to pursue as a career, my husband continued to play in the kitchen and to this day he still prepares most of our meals.
Even though she decided not to cook for a living, my daughter and her husband are both foodies and they love to entertain and prepare elaborate and interesting dishes for family and friends. My oldest daughter is also very capable in the kitchen and both her and her partner have prepared some memorable meals and enjoy competing in cook-offs that J’s family hosts on a regular basis.
Our son has lived on his own for quite awhile and is basically a self-taught cook. He has shared some very tasty dishes with us when he visits and he isn’t afraid to try new and sometimes ‘dangerous’ cooking techniques, as you will see in the video. Take note of the paper towel roll behind the stove….could have been a bit of a disaster. As my husband said upon viewing the video, “That is so B…..”
Deep frying the turkey.
My husband stirring the tomato sauce that we eventually canned.
My Irish soda bread.
G preparing her homemade pasta.
A feast at my oldest daughter’s and partner’s home.
My good friend, D, took me as her guest to the final concert of the WMCT’s Music in the Afternoon 2012-2013 series. It was a special concert, held at Koerner Hall, featuring baritone Russell Braun, accompanied by his wife, pianist Carolyn Maule and violinist James Ehnes. The two men are past recipients of scholarship and career development awards presented to them by the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto, an organization that has supported world class chamber music in the city for 115 years.
I leave you with a caprice played by James Ehnes. Many consider this Canadian treasure to be one of the best violinists in the world. Listen and see if you agree. His playing awed me today. I met him after the concert and bought one of his CDs.
At the start of our morning walk (a happy moment in itself) we ran into our neighbour J. After talking to J for a few moments you can’t walk away without a smile and a laugh. J is one of those people who is always happy and sees the good in every situation. He also has a sharp sense of humour and that twinkle in his eye can light up a room.
J and his partner own a small business in town where they design and manufacture the Buddy Belt, a great harness for dogs of all sizes. When we got Frances six years ago they started giving us Buddy Belts to ‘test drive’. I guess you could say we’ve become part of their consumer test group for their product.
Today Frances was wearing one of her original belts (as a puppy she chewed through her first one after we forgot to take it off) and J decided it was probably time for a new one. K jokingly said something about St Patrick’s Day coming up and the look in J’s eyes told me he was searching his memory for a green belt. Wouldn’t surprise me if one is hanging on our door knob in the next day or two.
The second happy moment took place this afternoon. My husband and I needed to get out of the house so we decided to check out the new hardware store up the street. After looking around for awhile K was need of coffee so we headed over to one of our favourite bistros. Just before leaving I looked up and saw a former student and his mom. I couldn’t get over how tall he had grown.
When I walked over to their table they were both surprised and pleased to see me. EC was 6 foot 3 and very handsome. He wasn’t particularly tall when he was with me in grade 5 but now at 16 he stands out in a crowd. It was good to hear that he was doing well in school and the problems he had when he was in junior school had pretty much disappeared. I love it when kids experience success and are working towards attainable goals.
Yesterday I told you that my husband couldn’t complete the 3 day cleanse with me and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do it without him. I’m happy to report that I completed my second day and it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. As an added bonus the smoothies were even better today.
Did you experience at least three happy moments today? Feel free to share them with us in the comment box. As you know those comments make me happy.
My fingers hovered over the keyboard of the computer as if wanting to play along with the Gershwin tune on the radio. The music on the classical station spontaneously made my fingers move to the rhythms of the Steinway grand piano but it didn’t help me find the words for my next story. I was hoping that they would magically appear on my laptop as I hummed to the music. I tried closing my eyes but I felt myself dozing off so I quickly refocused on the blank screen in front of me.
I randomly typed a few words looking for inspiration in the formation of the letters. Nothing. I continued to bob and sway to the music. Such a classic piece. Oh how I love Rhapsody in Blue! The music ends abruptly. Now what?
I go to Youtube and type in Rhapsody in Blue and I find the original performance. So different from what I just heard. Much faster and a tinnier sound. Now I really can’t focus on my writing. I’m totally enthralled with this music. It’s times like this when I wish I could play the piano. The irony is that I have a baby grand sitting in my livingroom and I never learned to play it.
When my son was 10 years old we discovered he had a natural musical gift and he started learning how to play the piano on an old upright that I had purchased from my choir when they were ready to buy a new one. On a whim one weekend, a year or so after our son started playing, we bought a baby grand we saw at the Home Show. Who does that? Well, we do apparently.
We never regretted our purchase. Two of our three children learned how to play it. The parents, however never did. I tried a couple of times to teach myself and I started to get the hang of it but I didn’t persevere and soon gave up practising. We’ve contemplated selling it, especially now that all our children are adults and have left the nest. The piano is in bad need of tuning but it is a beautiful piece of furniture.
I was almost ready to give in to the idea of selling it when my husband decided that he wants to learn how to play it. I can’t argue with that. If anyone can do it, he can. I’m just not sure when he wants to get started. When he does, I know it won’t be Rhapsody in Blue but Chopsticks might be a good start.
I leave you with this recording, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, as I continue to ponder on what I’m going to write.
…. I’m very emotional this time of year and music touches me to the core
Today L, K and I went downtown to enjoy the CBC’s Sounds of the Season concert. All day long radio shows were broadcast live with a studio audience and performances from musical guests. This year’s lineup included Nelly Furtado, Maestro Wes Williams, The Skydiggers, Rita Chiarelli, Blind Boys of Alabama, Liona Boyd and many more.
Between shows you could take part in the silent auction and bid on many wonderful packages put together by the celebrities at the CBC. All the money raised goes to the Daily Bread Food Bank. There was also an opportunity to meet your favourite CBC personalities and get their autographs and speak briefly with them. I can’t believe that I actually stood in line to do that but I have to admit that it was fun meeting the on air celebrities and putting a face to the voices we hear every day.
Dwight Drummond and Anne Marie M. from the CBC TV news
Mary Ito (left) from Fresh Air. I taught all three of Mary’s children. She’s as charming and outgoing as her picture appears.
The first show that we saw had the Skydiggers as the musical guest.
The Skydiggers
One of the numbers they sang was a cover of 2000 Miles by the Pretenders. As soon as the lead singer started the lyrics I started to sob like a baby. I couldn’t help it. I thought of my son in Amsterdam and how he wouldn’t be spending Christmas with us this year.
I couldn’t find a cover done by the Skydiggers but I did manage to find a video with the Pretenders doing this number in the 90s. I hope you enjoy it!
Mama Cormier 