Project 365

After several failed attempts at this, I figure I'm going to give it another go.

It's 2012 and now I can easily upload pictures from my blackberry and ipod touch. First picture shall be posted tomorrow.

100 Things to do in Toronto

1. Lie face down on the glass floor at the CN Tower
2. Sit upstairs at Union Station during rush hour
3. Skate at Nathan Phillips Square
4. Tour the Steam Whistle Brewery
5. Have a hot chocolate at Soma in The Distillery District
6. Do a bike tour of Toronto Island
7. Go shopping at Honest Ed’s
8. Walk the boardwalk at The Beach
9. Go to Dundas Square
10. Dine at a famous chef’s restaurant
11. Take a city walking tour and check out jane’s walk
12. Get out of the downtown core
13. Ride the 501 Queen Streetcar
14. Go shopping in Chinatown
15. Go to Kensignton Market Pedestrian Sundays
16. Window shop in Yorkville
17. Eat corn on the sidewalk in Little India in the summer
18. Take a train ride through High Park
19. Walk the entire PATH
20. Check out a local band
21. Sample honey at St. Lawrence Market
22. Tour the CBC building
23. Eat Souvlaki on The Danforth
24. Have dinner in Little Italy
25. Read in the garden at Casa Loma
26. Come face to face with a dinosaur at the ROM
27. Visit the AGO for free
28. Sample free beer at the Mill St Brewery in the Distillery District
29. Explore the Toronto alleys
30. Go to the Ontario Science Center
31. Check out the parks running north from the Don Valley - (ride a bike from the lake through the Don Valley all the way up through Serena Gundy Park and all the way up to Sunnybrook Park or Edward’s Gardens - there are trails all the way up, lots of cool stuff in there.)
32. High Park is also pretty cool
33. Cherry Beach
34. Sunnyside Park beaches
35. Tommy Thompson Park
36. Bluffers Park
37. Ice skating between Toronto Islands
38. Spend the last Sunday of the month (only from May to October)at Kensington Market - Pedestrian-only streets
39. Go buy some Whiskey Cheddar from Global Cheese in Kensington Market and eat it because I just had some and this stuff is seriously delicious. (as stated by ROB_K)
40. Check out the Working and Historical Post Office on Adelaide St East
41. Any historical house, ie: mackenzie, spadina, etc..
42. riverdale farm/cabbagetown especially when the festivals are on
43. Tobogganing down riverdale park east hill.. the west side has a baseball diamond now.. may be a bit dangerous!
44. Sunbathing at hanlan’s point clothing optional beach
45. Watch a movie at one of Toronto’s many film festivals
46. Help put together a free community feast with Food Not Bombs
47. Have a coffee in the cafe at the corner of Baldwin and Augusta before 8AM on a weekday and watch the people who pass before they go to work
48. Visit LCBO Summerhill to glory in the past, marvel in the present, as the immaculately restored North Toronto Railway Station (Circa 1916) is now the largest and most fascinating wine & spirits store in Canada.
49. Fair Trade coffee & delicious sandwiches at Tinto’s on Roncesvalles
50. Join the Caribana Parade
51. Brickworks Farmer’s Market (May - Oct) and for that matter, biking in and around the Brickworks
52. Checking out the view of Toronto from hill next to Brickworks
53. Check out where Lake Ontario meets Scarberia (near Port Union Station)
54. Watch the sun rise/set from the end of the Leslie Spit
55. The Junction Arts Fest in September (one of Toronto’s best kept secrets)
56. Bike the Humber River Trail
57. Friday Community Picnic in Dufferin Grove Park
58. Bonfire on beach out in Scarborough (near Morningside I think)
59. Promise Party at the Beaches
60. Sunnybrook Park (horses are in the back of the park, in the stables)
61. Biking the Ex at night during spring when no one is around, spooky.
62. Go to for an ice cream at the Dutch Cafe (funny building and awesome assortment of ice cream!)
63. Dive into Pomegranate deliciousness at marouf tochal
(everything is made of pomegranate: juice, dried fruit, ice cream, marmelade…YUM!)
64. Take a walk from the beaches westward to sunnyside park on the boardwalk (or bike)
65. Take the carillon tour with Gerald from CS.
66. Get your hands on the ceramic wheel at the Gardiner Museum on Fridays and Sundays
67. Enjoy an aperitif with view from the rooftop bar of the Park Hyatt
68. Go to a concert at the beautiful Roy Thomson Hall (and find discounted tickets on sale the same day)
69. Watch Rocky Horror Picture Show at Bloor Cinema on Halloween at midnight
70. Read a book in Queen’s Park Spring/Summer/Fall which is also home to Ontario Legislative Assembly
71. Mutahdi’s Drumming Festival (July – Queen’s Park)
72. Kick Ass Karaoke
73. Brunch in St. Lawrence Market
74. Picnic on Toronto Islands
75. Plant trees in with Bring Back the Don
76. The AIDS Memorial (behind the 519 on church)
77. Eat at Zelda’s (On Yonge Street)
78. Play a round of manhunt
79. Visit Ireland Park down at the waterfront
80. Audit a lecture by one of Toronto’s (semi-)famous professors: Mark Kingswell, Nick Mount, etc
81. Take in a concert of one of Toronto’s Talented music acts
82. Pay a visit to 401 Richmond
83. Visit the actual Distillery District
84. Watch the real pros play basketball at Harbourfront Community Centre outdoor courts
85. Wychwood Barns an exciting project they have going with the STOP
86. Harbourfront Festivals (any weekend starting from May - September) there’s Hot N Spicy, Ukranian, Askenazi, Chinese… showcases the diversity of Toronto.
87. Sample Polish or Ukranian desserts in roncesvalles/Bloor West Village
88. Eat at the world’s only Hungarain Thai restaurant in Kensington Market
89. Participate in Improv at Bad Dog Theatre
90. Museum of Inuit Art on your way to Harbourfront
91. Check out Matador’s a late night after hours club
92. Jazz festival in the Beach
93. Check out one of the many historical churches in the city like; St. Michael’s, St. James’, St. Patrick’s, etc..
94. check out the Fringe Fest
95. “Dream in High Park” plays presented during the summer
96. Shop at Active Surplus
97. Check out clay and paper theater
98. Check out the Gay Pride Parade
99. Check out WinterCity
100. If Batman is in town, this is where you will find him; Sneaky Dees

My goal is to accomplish all of these things before I turn 25. I`ve never really been a tourist in my own city so I`ll try to finish everything this year :)

scatterbrains.

Lately I've found myself in an all-too-familiar place. A rut. Financially, creatively.....pretty much any word that can end in "-ly". I'm not too sure why. I had everything going for me a month ago. Perhaps it's boredom? A longing to start something new in my life?

Either way, all I've wanted to do lately is sleep away the days until Christmas. That's the kind of person I am, I guess. Instead of facing my problems head on I decide to hibernate until they somehow solve themselves.

It's kind of funny because I have all these crazy ideas swirling in my head, and all of these things I want to try. But every time I decide that I'll do it, I hold myself back and say, "I'll do it tomorrow." or "I'll start next month/year".

Plus the fact that there's that voice in the back of head that screams, "You'll never finish that once you start!!" and "What's the point of trying it, you'll screw it up somehow!!!!" whenever I get excited about starting something. I need to learn how to silence that annoying little girl.

Cheddar Buttermilk Biscuits

The other day I was trying to figure out how I would use up the buttermilk from my red velvet cupcakes and I came across a recipe for Bacon Cheddar Drop Biscuits. Marlon absolutely loves bacon so he was on board with the idea as soon as the words came out of my mouth haha. We didn't have green onions, so we used some garlic seasoning that I had laying around in my house. Also, we did prepare the bacon, but it didn't last long enough to make it into the biscuits haha. I was already halfway through the mixture and didn't have enough patience to wait for it to cool down.

It's a fairly simple recipe, you just have to really watch the biscuits. They were already golden brown with 6 minutes left, but I thought they wouldn't be cooked if I took them out early. Turns out, if I had taken them out early they would have come out perfect. Instead, they were burnt at the bottom. They were a little hard on top, but once you reached the inside they were perfect, so I'm happy about that.

the (Red) Velvet Rope

In my quest for domestication, I've been loading up on recipes that I find online; baking recipes or cooking recipes, it doesn't matter. These are recipes that I've been saving for months now, so you can imagine how backed up my bookmark folder is haha.

The first recipe I tried was for Red Velvet Cupcakes. Red Velvet is my absolute favourite type of cake/cupcakes, so I was really anxious to try it out. I've tried making red velvet before, but I didn't use buttermilk...and it wasn't pretty. So this time, with the correct ingredients, I set out on making my first ever batch of cupcakes from scratch.

I don't really know if I can classify my baking skills as actual "skills", seeing as I can only make cupcakes when they come in that red Betty Crocker box. The only thing I've made from scratch is chocolate chip cookies, and even then I mess up sometimes. So of course making these cupcakes from scratch was a bit nerve wracking. Every time I added an ingredient I would look at Marlon with hesitation. I even went as far as buying a few cake mixes just in case these didn't turn out. After all, I had promised my younger cousin a night of cupcake decorating and devouring and I wasn't about to fall back on my promise!!!

The cupcakes turned out nicely; not too sweet but not bland, either. We used cream cheese frosting to finish them off, which was a nice compliment to the subtle cocoa flavour. I'd say it was a success for my first ever cupcakes baked from scratch!!!

Next up on the list? Mango Cupcakes

"I'm not superstitious, I'm just a little stitious"

Today was such an odd day. First there was that completely random earthquake, followed by a barrage of peculiar customers at work.

Actually...the rest of the day was pretty normal haha. My boyfriend spent the day with me because my parents are out of town and I didn't want to be home alone. We made dinner, he rescued me from moths, the usual.

But what happened next was a little weird. We were sitting on the stairs waiting for his dad to come pick him up. I was already upset that he wasn't spending the night. For some reason I really didn't want to be alone, so I was sulking. Suddenly I noticed the reflection of his shoes in the screen door window was a little distorted. And then I saw those shining eyes. A black cat had made its way up the steps and was watching me from the top step in front of my door. Now, usually when I'm faced with a strange animal I get scared or jump in surprise, but for some reason I felt at peace when I saw this cat. I was more excited than scared. Unfortunately when I got up I was a little more excited than I should have been, because I scared him off. It was weird though because when Marlon came up and shooed the cat away, it suddenly turned around and stared back at us as if it was making sure everything was alright.

After that happened I was kind of obsessing over it. I googled it (of course) and although black cats are synonymous with bad luck, they can also be signs of good luck. I also learned that cats are signs of protection (though some believe that black cats are familiars with witches and demons). I like to think that this cat was protecting me because it knew I would be home alone. So now, even though Marlon felt like it was a bad omen, we have decided to "adopt" this cat. For all I know I was reading too much into it and he was just hungry and noticed the open doorway at 11pm. Cats get lonely sometimes too. Anyway, we've decided to name him Ninja. I hope I see him again tomorrow.

Tonight I'm going to go to sleep feeling protected, rather than afraid.

Lately I've been reading this cooking blog called Cheeky Kitchen. I absolutely love the way it's written, and it kind of makes me wish I had the eloquence of a "professional blogger". I used to be able to write really long paragraphs, full of adjectives and excitement. Now, it's more like simple sentence fragments. I'm pretty sure twitter killed my blogging ability.

I've also been really inspired to learn how to cook. Baking, I can do. Cooking is a different story. I can't cook to save my life. The most I know is throwing everything in a big pot and making sinigang, a sort of Filipino stew. I'd like to be the kind of mom who can whip up a steak dinner or a Quiche Lorraine if my children and husband desire it. I suppose one of the problems is expensive groceries (my future as an Extreme Coupon-er will help me with this). Plus the quality of ingredients in my area. Unfortunately I don't live close to any farmer's markets, nor do I have the vehicle (or license to drive said vehicle) that will get me to any farmer's markets in any surrounding areas. Another problem is my inability to read instructions. I learn by doing. Or by having someone bark orders at me. But reading recipes....sometimes I skim out of boredom and leave out a crucial part. I don't know. All I know is that I'm making it my personal project to learn how to cook those lovely dishes from those lovely cooking blogs. Dessert included. I don't think I can resist baking.

Anyway, my boyfriend is telling me to go to bed. We don't even live together yet and he's already such a bossypants haha.