July 26, 2010

Anne Murray et al.

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So I'm going to throw a mixed bag at you, since I'm not feeling very linear-minded today.

DIET:

I hate the word, and I'm not on one exactly.... But here's the thing. Over the course of the renovations, I have eaten take-out around 70% of the time. Not because I can afford to, and certainly not because I prefer to, but because life has been crazy and I didn't have to patience to plan all my meals. Even when I did, I would find that the groceries had gone bad.

Take-out is heavier than what I eat at home. It's greasier. It requires a lot of exercise to burn off, which I haven't done much of (unless you count banging my head against a freshly-painted wall as exercise). So I've gained some weight, making my jeans too tight and most importantly, making my boobs too big. Honestly. I've always been modestly endowed and happily so. Having tight bras was the breaking point for me. I'm shrinking my portions, eating less sugar and snacking on veggies more. Who knows if it will work, but I'm sure as shit not buying a new bra just because my boobs decided to get gigantic. Fuck that.

ECO LAWN:

My precious eco-lawn was germinating during the heat wave, and that week of +40 insanity murdered my grass. It was completely refused to grow beyond the soft green starters I was getting so excited about.

The debate then became... Do we give up and put down sod? Or do we try again? For a while I was gunning for sod, and let me explain. I have two dogs who play in the backyard. Because there is no ground cover, they come inside all dirty and muddy. Then they jump on the white couch.

Well, the couch is now brown and I'm out of patience. We're going to try once more (compost, seeds and lots of water) and hope we don't get a heat wave. Fingers crossed.

ANNE MURRAY:

Random, right?

There's a commercial on TV for a children's charity, and it uses an Anne Murray song as its theme. It always puzzled me why I know every single word of it. I don't really listen to Anne Murray, but I knew the arrangement, the harmony, the verses....

And then it hit me. When I was in children's choir a million years ago, we sang at the NAC as part of a big musical event (although the purpose escapes me now). We sang that Anne Murray song... With Anne Murray. On stage.

The mystery is solved, but my next question is... Why did I repress that?

PAD THAI:

I'm making it my mission to find the perfect pad thai recipe. I've tried a few over the past year, but they're only been passable. The search begins again. Have I ever told y'all how much I love pad thai?

I do. Lots.

Got any recipes for me? Ones that you've tried and loved?

6 comments:

Milan said...

This approach to dieting makes a lot of sense:

http://www.sindark.com/2009/07/04/diet-for-nerds-and-computer-programmers/

You will probably be glad to know that, while it is nerdy, it isn't necessarily mathematical.

Shawna said...

I REMEMBER WHY!

Also, as soon as I read the "Anne Murray" tag, it was the first thing I thought of:

Circa 1995, Anne Murray was getting awarded a Governor General's Award and the gala was at the NAC. Oscar Peterson was also getting one.

You were in the chamber choir I so desperately wanted to be in. You guys sang that Anne Murray song..."You needed me" ?? It's a cheesy-as-hell song but damn you did it pretty.

We all sang "Hymn to Freedom". It was epic. It's sappy too, but it still holds a soft spot in my heart all these years later.

In the finale, Ashley MacIsaac stood beside me on stage, jumping up and down in a Pepsi shirt.

You gotta admit, all those nights backstage at the NAC made for a pretty incredible childhood experience...

Miriam said...

Dear Hella Stella!

Eco-Lawn's not meant to be started in the super hot summer weather!! Please try again when it cools down in your region! Hope you don't mind I help out! Gimme a shout if you have any questions about Eco-Lawn. It'll work for you. Timing is everything!!

Stella said...

Milan: Nice. Thanks.

Shawna: What would I do without you? Shrivel up and die, that's what.

Miriam: Thanks for the comment! We weren't expecting the heat wave, and it lasted forever. We are replanting in a week or two, and I'll be praying to the gods of weather that we don't get any more crazy heat.

Nat said...

I have never tried it, but I have a cookbook called Simply Thai cooking. I'll email it to you.

This in spite of the fact that I now have You Needed Me stuck in my head. (also useless nat fact, my dad went to UNB with Anne Murray. He had something to do with the first record she pressed.)

Anonymous said...

The best pad thai I've ever had was at Golden Thai in Toronto (Church corner of Richmond). But pad thai is a very individual taste thing -- there are so many different versions. I try to make mine like Golden Thai's but my recipe is kind of hap-hazard. I can email you the basics some time if you like