Summerlicious: Amaya

It is time for Summerlicious again. What a wonderful way to explore restaurants you might not think of visiting otherwise. Yesterday, I went to Amaya, an Indian restaurant on Bayview, south of Eglinton. Go there. It is excellent. We had a salmon appetizer and the portion was bigger than some of the entrees that I have had elsewhere. The more important point is that it was excellent. The butter chicken that we had for a main with basmati rice and naan bread, again excellent. I am not going to as many restaurants as in the past but this one was definitely one that said visit again.
Will be visiting Pangea on Tuesday and will report on that after. Have heard nothing but good things.

Chick Pea Salad

Not sure if I already posted this recipe but it was enjoyed so much by the ladies I had lunch with that I decided to post it again.
Enjoy.

Sweet and Sour Chick Pea Salad


2 cans (19 oz each) chick peas, drained

1 cup chopped green pepper

½ cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic crushed and finely chopped

2 tablespoons, finely chopped parsley

½ cup cider vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup vegetable oil

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper



Mix all ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate for 4-5 hours or overnight. Drain. Serve salad in a bowl garnished with onion rings and additional chopped parsley.

4-6 servings

Remember to Ask all the Right Questions!

This is a story that was published by the Retired Teacher of Ontario.

Remember to ask all the right questions!



Big waves, big breakfast = not a good idea.


A number of years ago, my husband Michael and I were in sunny California. It was March and the grey whales were heading back up north after breeding on the west coast of Mexico. We love whales and thought the best way to spend our last day in California would be to go whale watching. The whale watching tour we chose took off from Half Moon Bay.



We made our way to the boat site and were very early. Since the buses to Half Moon Bay from San Francisco did not run very often, the particular bus that we took was more than an hour before the boat launch. This was the one that made most sense. Breakfast also seemed like a good idea.



Now why breakfast seemed like a good idea to someone who gets motion sick, I will never know. I get sick watching micro-fiche in the library. It is the motion of the objects on the screen that do me in. I have also managed to get motion sick playing slots on the ferry from Bar Harbour to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Again, it is caused by the motion of the objects on the screen. It does seem to take me a while to learn.



After a hardy breakfast, we headed out to the pier to wait for our boat. The water looked quite calm. This was not really the case but I am not a person who has been to oceans very often and therefore, I did not understand breakwaters but I soon would.



The boat was small; we were off to see whales. Oh, that was not to be. Once passed the breakwater, the ocean became choppy and the boat was tossed about. A number of us became very seasick. It seems that there are different degrees of seasickness.



One of the passengers was so sick that she lay on the deck of the boat and could not even move when the crew warned us that we were turning back and waves might come overboard. The warning was well intentioned. She was soon soaking wet having been covered by a wave. Others hung over the back of the boat commenting sadly that they had paid to do this. Like me, they had not anticipated the severity of the trip.





Relief was finally stepping on land that did not keep moving and swaying. After some time on shore, I started to feel better. We wanted to head back to San Francisco. Our flight home was early the next morning. We stood at the bus stop waiting with anticipation for the ride back to the city. Nothing appeared for some time. We asked a young boy passing by when the bus was expected. He knew nothing. The store we were standing in front of closed. We started to get worried.



Finally, after a long wait a bus appeared, it was going to opposite way but we were so desperate that we were ready to ride on the bus and come back. Thank God we asked the bus driver if he was heading back to San Francisco. Yes, he was heading back but it was a passenger-less run. It was time to take the bus back.



We pleaded and mentioned that we were from Canada. That did it. He was a former football star who played for the Ottawa Rough Rider. He took pity on us and also was pleased to be helping Canadians. He took us over the mountains and back to San Francisco. We were so happy to be taken back to the city. We were heading home the next morning and had no idea how we would have gotten back. You never know when you are going to come across someone who will help you.



This is one trip that we still talk about many years later. I have a feeling that we will be in rocking chairs and will tell anyone who will listen about our whale watching trip.

Mathematics without calculators!

This is about Longfellow Middle School in Falls Church, Virginia and a teacher who has the courage to fight the system and others who have authority and teach without computers. Instead he makes his students think. He uses old text books because they have better examples and are not confusing with irrelevant material. Interesting, I have thought that mathematics has gotten off track the past number of years. Sadly, I am often thought of as a Luddite because I oppose the use of computers and calculators without considering why they are being used.
It seems that the tools that some teachers are using are interesting toys but do not really teach the students. Wonder when teachers will accept that sometimes the old ways are actually relevant and work.
When will this leap to technology stop and when will educators and their superiors stop and reflect what is going on?
If you can access the article: Why your Kids can't add without a calculator, do. It is very revealing.

Happy Canada Day

Happy Canada Day.
Time to celebrate Canada and what we have. Interesting watching the United States they have a health care programme but it is not as good as ours. People still have to purchase plans and as we know not all plans are a like. There are fewer restrictions on medical conditions which is good.
This is not all that is good about Canada.
Enjoy the day and remember to appreciate what we have.

Summer is here

Summer is finally here and after the long wait, I am already getting organized for the fall. One tennis membership has been submitted and now another one came by e-mail. Amazing how you are in one season and getting ready for the next. I am also booking chamber music performances.
Supposed to be very warm today but so far it is good. Not complaining. Hopefully, this will be the last of the really warm weather for a bit.
Enjoy summer.

Music Exams

The next 3 days will be filled with music exams. I will be listening to playing exams starting at about 10:30 this morning. I must stay focused on what student plays. It will be hard but I can do it. Hard to stay focused on exams this long. I have to admire examiners at institutions like the Royal Conservatory. They have to do weeks of examining.
Some of the students who I will be listening to will be tested by me for the first time which is unusual. I have not taught them but they are on my list of classes. Oh well, we will manage.

Time to get on with life

Now that I have 2 1/2 days off, I remember what it is like to enjoy some time off. Yesterday, I had a gig in the middle of the day. I only managed that a couple times recently and that was because the performances were planned before I was asked to work and I could not reschedule. It is nice to have a minute to relax and go and visit some important people. Going to visit my 93 year old friend. Have not seen her since I started working. That is two months now. Hard to believe that time has passed so quickly. My next thing is to get some errands done. Going to the car wash at the car dealership this morning. That will be different. Have never done that but it is time that I tried. I am becoming braver with time. Parked in underground parking yesterday, again for me a strange thing. I don't like underground parking. Seen too many movies where bad things happen.
Two more weeks and I am off for the summer.

High School versus Elementary

Having had a chance to experience elementary school for 30 years and then high school for 5, I will take high school any day. The differences are incredible. High school during exams that is all you do and if you have a day or part of a day when you are not teaching you do not have to stay in school. That is why I have time today to post on the blog. I do not have exams until Monday when I start for three intense days. If I were in elementary, there would be no time off and the teaching loads are very different. The first issue is that you do not teach more than 175 students. I often had over 400 students and I taught everyone, there was no choice on the part of students or me.
Teaching load in terms of classes is very different as well. High school, you have a period off and this period is 70 minutes and a lunch, elementary you were lucky if you had a period off each day and it would not be 70 minutes. Lunch was not 70 minutes and sometimes you had lunch duty. All of this a challenge. Band, choir and any other groups are not part of the teaching load in elementary, in high school they count as part of the teaching load.
The report cards are also an issue. I completed two classes in about 10 minutes. In elementary it would take about an hour at least and generally more. Why are they not using the same systems, it does not make sense.
If elementary understood the differences, I am not sure that people would be so eager to teach the young. It can be fun but the loads are not equitable.

Ray Bradbury has passed

It was with surprise that I read that Ray Bradbury passed away yesterday. I read some of his work many years ago. Little did I realize that he was still writing at the time. What a science fiction icon! He lived through interesting times and will be missed.
Time to reread some of his work.

Snail Mail

Just when you thought that all mail  is now e-mail, I read an article yesterday that supports my snail mail activity. It states that people are sending regular mail. There are cards being produced that people are pleased to send and receive. Who knew? I certainly work to keep the post office busy and not just sending advertising flyers.
Send those cards and letters by regular mail, people love getting something in the mail.
If my students are any indication, e-mails are not read regularly by many.
Looking forward to that next card or letter in the mail.

Jeffrey Leung

Last night, we had the pleasure of hearing a performance by an saxophonist that I have had the pleasure of teaching and then following his progress at university. Jeffrey Leung has had a number of performances that we have seen and this was the latest. The piece was Escapades for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra from the Dreamworks Film "Catch Me if you Can". What a wonderful piece played with such skill by Jeffrey.
We are looking forward to his next performance. It won't be until next year since he is off to Iowa to study with a renowned saxophonist, Dr. Kenneth Tse and then maybe follow up with a Masters from there.
Fascinating what students can do if they set their mind to it and are willing to go explore options.

Catch up

I really don't know how I managed when I working in terms of keeping up with blogs and things like that. Actually, if I remember correctly, I did not start a blog until I retired. Right now, a blog is the last thing that I think when I am off to work. There is plenty to keep me busy with the teaching, working with students on performances. We had the school concert last week. It was a success which is nice for the teacher who I am replacing while he is on a sick leave. I also have personal performances to keep track of and prepare for.
I am able to keep up with most things but this blog is definitely extra.
Today, the weekend, I have got most of my mail done and yes, I send regular mail as well as cards and pay bills by mail. Easier to keep track of what is happening.
Will be back blogging regularly once school is over for the year. Just a month to go. Summer holidays will mean something this year.
Hope that everyone enjoys the weekend.

Kim's Convenience

If you are looking for something good to see, go to Kim's Convenience at Soulpepper in the Distillery district. It is an interesting examination of the immigrant experience, especially the Korean one. It seems that many of Toronto's convenience stores are operated by Koreans. The second generation has difficulty understanding the sacrifices that have been made on its behalf. Kim's Convenience is a discussion in play form of the changes that occur in Toronto and the difficulties experienced.
Go and see this.

Helping others

Yesterday, I came home to a lovely surprise. A neighbour had left flower for me to thank me for a small gesture. I give her the crosswords from two of the papers that I get each day. I also give her the section of the paper that has a column by a journalist who she enjoys. A small gesture that is appreciated. We all need to remember to show our appreciation for gestures that others make.
Surprise someone today.

Different Priorities

While I am working my priorities have changed temporarily. Need to get up early each morning, have breakfast and make lunches. Unfortunately, no time to write on my blog. Today since it is Sunday have time for another entry which will not be very exciting.
However, do want to say that we went to the Bach Children's chorus concert last night and it was wonderful. What a celebration of 25 years. Hope that Linda makes it to another 25. The best part was the boys section. They got the greatest applause other than the finale which was Down by the Riverside.
Hope that everyone is having a wonderful weekend and enjoying Mother's day in their own way.

It is May

Wow, time is passing quickly. Had forgotten how work takes up your time. I have not posted for two weeks. Time is passing quickly and I am not going to complain. Have friends who wish time would pass more quickly for them. They have illnesses of various kinds. Will not describe the issues. Just believe me when I say that the issues are serious.
Work is going well. I have another month and half and then I am back to supplying when needed. Have already posted some commitments. Don't have to count my days so carefully which will be good. 20 days goes very quickly. 50 will be much better.
Looking forward to playing tennis again. I really miss the regular exercise. Need to at least take a walk later.
Breakfast first.
Hope that everyone is doing well.

Posts?

Since I have returned to work, things have calmed down and there is very little that is different and exciting in my life. Today is good. I am off to Peterborough with some friends. We will have lunch and see a play. Nice.
The coming week is 5 days of work and 3 gigs. The first one is Tuesday evening and I will be playing with Zach at Princess Margaret Lodge. A good thing to do. Then the gigs that help pay for all my musical activity. You can read more about those activities on my Taffanel Wind Ensemble blog.
Hope that everyone has a good week.

Heart Attack

It nothing like a heart attack or serious illness to put life into perspective. A friend recently had a serious heart attack. He can not drive for a month, can only up and down the stairs once a day and walk the dog for 5 minutes. His spirits were not good today. This is hard. Some of his students spoke to me today. I suggested that it is time to send him their best wishes. Stop waiting to make the ultimate card. Send their thoughts and wishes for him now. As a person alone with their thoughts. It is easy to think that others have forgotten about them.
Time to remember people.

Woman dead for threes before discovery

Just read a newspaper article about a woman in New York who was dead for three years before she was discovered. The article asked why someone did not notice her bills weren't paid. I would assume that she had all her accounts on prepaid and as long as her account had funds the bills continued to be paid. Mail would pile up at her mail slot but that would not trigger any thoughts that something was wrong because no one would be checking.
This is a reminder to keep in touch with people and to keep triggers going that would let people know that something might be wrong. What a terrible incident.

Time to Reflect

Yesterday, as I was gathering up my thoughts about preparing to take students to play at a chamber music festival got some terrible news. The music department head at the high school where I supply had a heart attack. I found out after I returned from the festival that it was bad. I will be supplying for until the end of the month and have to find out if it will be longer. He had been so proud of how well he was doing. He had worked hard the past couple years to lose weight and to be fitter. Hopefully he will recover fully and come back to teach. Time will tell. In the meantime, time to think about things.
Hope that everyone has a good day.

Life is good

Not much to post that is new. I am playing tennis regularly. Off shortly to play my Friday singles. This afternoon, I have a gig with my trio which should be fun. It is in a new location in Aurora. We are branching out. This evening, I am going out for Chinese food which should be nice. Other than that, I am doing my usual computing which includes posting on my blog. I have not been good about doing this. Noticed that I am lucky if I manage twice a week. Please understand it does not mean that there is a problem. Just that there is nothing new. No new recipes which I should try to do. I am sure that you are not interested in how I play tennis.
Will try to find new things which is also good for me.
Have a wonderful day.

George Brown College Restaurant

Today, I finally got the George Brown College restaurant. It was interesting. The students are working on menus that do not seem too difficult. Guess eventually the main courses will be as interesting as their appetizers which were excellent. Dessert was so so. But then again, I have gone to many restaurants and found that there is quite a variation.
What I and the person who I went with found was the drinks even if they were non-alcoholic certainly added to the bill.
Not sure if I would repeat the experience. Much like haircutting schools. The students need to learn skills and this is a good way to do it. Dessert was a real disappointment, the main was okay. Would be interesting to find out what level they are. First year or second. I would hope for more from second year chefs.

Happy Easter

Hope that everyone is enjoying the Easter weekend. After a busy week of gigs, playing tennis, baking and computing time to relax a bit.
Enjoy time with family and friends.

El Sistema in New Brunswick

El Sistema is expanding its reach. It is now in New Brunswick. Recently, Robert Irving of the Irvings of New Brunswick came to a concert of tyro Sistema orchestra of pre-adolexcent children, most of them form Moncton's economically challenged neighbourhoods. He loved the concert and asked the instrumentalists to play at a Wildcats game. That was a thrill for the musicians.
Capturing hearts is an El Sistema specialty. The Orchestra based musical education system founded by the musician-economist Jose Antonio Abreu in the slum of Caracas, Venezuela in 1975 has captured the hearts and minds of people like Simon Rattle who has stated that something important musically is happening in Venezuela.
This is a project that continues to spread. How wonderful.

Curried Winter Vegetable and Bean Soup

Curried Winter Vegetable and Bean Soup

Warm up a frosty winter evening with this low-fat, nutrient-loaded broth. For the beans, a canned or frozen mixture is convenient but any cooked beans can be used (red, white, pinto, Romano, black-eyed peas, chickpeas etc.)

1 tbs (15 ml) vegetable oil
1 large onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp (5 ml) minced fresh ginger
1 tbs (15 ml) curry powder
4 cups (1 L) chicken stock
1/2 cup (125 ml) drained canned tomatoes, crushed
1 each medium carrot and potato, diced
1/2 cup (125 ml) frozen or canned corn kernels
1 cup (250 ml) drained canned or frozen mixed beans
2 tbs. (30 ml) chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste

(When I cooked this, I used the whole can of tomatoes, corn and beans and the taste was excellent. When you use the amounts suggested the soup is watery while with the amounts that I used, it is a hearty soup.)

In a large heavy saucepan over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook until softened but not browned. Add garlic, ginger and curry powder, cook, stirring for about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes and carrot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook until carrot is slightly tender, about 3 minutes. Add potato, corn and beans. Return to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in parsley. Add salt and pepper as needed. Makes 6 servings. ( A little more when using the amount of tomatoes, corn and beans that I used.)

Homemakers December 99
Made December 5, 1999. excellent, flavourful, hardy

Garden Socieites!

An newspaper article that I saved mentions Garden Societies and their many virtues. They have experts who want so share their knowledge, plant sales and tours. I am already planning to attend my garden society's sale as well as help with the Garden Tour. Visit your local garden society for advice. The Ontario Horticultural Society will be happy to direct you to local garden societies. There are many. When I helped at Canada Blooms, I was amazed at how many there. My job was to help people find a garden society near them.
I hope that none you in these cold areas were fooled by the weather and started planting too soon. We are getting snow tonight. As someone mentioned to me last week as we stood outside after a garden club executive meeting in spring jackets, it will snow. It always does before the end of March. This is cutting it close but he is right, snow is arriving tonight.
Enjoy the bulbs and hope that the Magnolia blooms do not get hurt even more.

Greg Payce at the Gardiner

If you read my posting about the stolen purse, you read briefly about the fact that I visited the Gardiner Museum yesterday. What a lovely visit. We went to see the Greg Payce exhibit. He has worked with urns of different styles and medium to create human forms using negative space. It is interesting how the urns create the form of males and females when placed side by side. Greg Payce, who resides in Alberta has made quite a study of this form. It is worth the visit to the gallery to see the exhibit. Tuesdays there are tours led by volunteers and they are definitely worth it.
Go and enjoy the Greg Payce exhibit.

Watch your purse!

Yesterday, I went to an art exhibit at the Gardiner Gallery. I will write about that later. Right now I want to warn people to watch their belongings. My friend and I went for coffee after the exhibit and we were in Second Cup right across from the Museum. My friend put her purse on the floor between her and the wall, I put my purse and bag on a chair beside me. I could see my purse at all times. Unfortunately she could not see her purse and someone came up while we were having coffee and grabbed her purse. We did not even notice it happen. The person certainly had nerve and must have been a woman since a man would have drawn attention to what he was doing carrying a purse. I think that I know who it was since there was someone behind us and she moved close while we were drinking coffee. No real need for that. Unfortunately, I could never point her out.
My main point is watch your bags and try to be careful what you put in your purse.

School in High Park

When I lived in the High Park area, we would sometimes walk through the park on the way to the playground, the zoo or the gardens, all attractions to me and my grandmother. I would see beds and benches for students. I don't remember seeing the students but the article that I read in Renaissance, the Retired Teachers of Ontario Magazine suggests that there would have been students.
The school functioned Monday to Saturday each year, May 1st to October 31st. In the time that passed, I sometimes thought that it was my imagination that there were students in the woods. How remarkable to find out that there really were students studying in the woods. I understand that tuberculous is not the problem that it once was but won't it be wonderful to be able to study under the trees in High Park. Too bad that they closed the school down.

Cornmeal Muffins

Back to baking. All our previous muffins are finished. Today, I baked cornmeal muffins since they are one of my husband's favourite. Tried a new recipe from cooking without recipes.

The pattern for Muffins:
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups flour, measured after sifting
1 egg
1 cup milk
2 to 4 tablespoons fat, melted or liquid (The more fat, the more tender the muffin.)

Combine dry and liquid ingredients and fill greased muffin pans two-thirds full. Bake in a preheated hot, 400o F, oven about 20 minutes. The muffins have finished baking when a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Makes approximately 12 muffins.
Cornmeal Muffins
Substitute 1 cup cornmeal, stirred before measuring, for 1 cup of the flour in the pattern for Muffins.

Taxes

It is that time of year. We need to get our taxes done. Thank goodness we decided to use an accountant last year. Now we are getting better at collecting all our documents. After going through everything, we have decided that the company that holds a great deal of my husband's accounts is definitely happily making money because every time they make a trade, they charge the account. It looks like they happily trade without any serious rhyme or reason, it is a way for the trader to make money. There is very little buy and hold going on. This is one of the ways that Wall street and the Toronto traders make money.
Time to rethink what is going with our money.

Garlic making comeback

Apparently, garlic is making a comeback. I never realized that it is not in vogue. Liz Primeau, Mississauga based author of In Pursuit of Garlic: An Intimate Look at the Divinely Odorous Bulb has explored the bulb in her book.
She looks at how to grow the bulb which is very easy, cook-fun and tasty and love garlic. What is not to love unless you are heading out in a crowd that has not consumed garlic. It was the fall of the Berlin Wall that brought garlic back to the forefront of culinary experiences. People could get garlic from the east. Not sure why they weren't able to get it otherwise. That must be another story.
The article about garlic and her book gives 10 fun facts about garlic and the most fun is that it has antioxidant powers. Most important.
Enjoy Primeau's book and more important garlic.

MD's health habits

I often wondered why my mother-in-law's doctors never commented on her smoking, eating habits and lack of exercise. Today, there is an article in the Post paper under Body and Health and it comments that doctors who smoke are unlikely to address their patients smoking habits despite the fact it is known to be a problem. The same is true of weight. Doctors who are over-weight are unlikely to deal with this issue. As the article suggests, it would be hard to find a doctor who does not have some bad habits. We would have difficulty finding the perfect doctor. Too bad that one of the requirements for medical school is not good health habits. Would be interesting to see what the results would be.
Unfortunately, stress can cause people to put on weight and doctors have plenty of stress to deal with.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Today is St. Patrick's day and I will be celebrating by playing at a seniors home this afternoon. There will be some young people dancing but they are not able to dance for the hour so we will play before they dance and then finish out the hour.
We are going out for dinner this evening. Hope that the place is not Irish or we will have a problem. I am not going to make a point of mentioning it since it seems to be a treat and that is important.
Happy St. Paddy's day to all of you.

Watch what you post!

I am usually careful about the e-mails that I forward. It seems that I was not as careful recently. There is always a kernel of truth in most things but sometimes it is what it doesn't say that is just as important as what is said. I will be careful and not pass on items that are of a political nature. There are so many nuances that you can not get in a simple one page e-mail.
This is much like the news bits that are broadcast. The sound bite can not capture the essence of what has happened or been said.
I should have thought things through and will in the future.

Habits for success

It is interesting how some people believe that being spontaneous is the answer to how to do things. I believe that as much routine as possible is best. Now, I do believe that some spontaneity is good but not planning anything is bad. I realize that sometimes, life gets in the way and it is not possible to keep up habits. Sometimes, it is necessary to deal with the road blocks and problems that life puts in the way but as much routine as possible is good for success. I read an article about Michael Phelps and how routine was part of his habits from what he would eat to warm-ups and focus on the race in his case. The interesting part of the article points out that it was tiny moments of success that were important and that they built up a bigger picture of success.
Will be interesting to see if these routines hold up at the London Olympics this summer.
In the meantime, I will try to continue to build my routines and decide what successes I want in my life.

Joanne Fluke

I love to read and mystery novels are what I read the most. One of the reasons is that I like to support a local book store, Sleuth of Baker Street. I do not want independent bookstores to go under. Would be sad to see them disappear.
Just finished another book. My March break will be spent reading among other things. No practises at night so I will have some down time. The book that I finished was Cinnamon Roll Murder by Joanne Fluke. I have read all the books in the series, 15 of them. Enjoyed them all and one of these days I will be tempted to cook or bake some of the recipes included in the book. I will cook hers or the recipes included in Diane Mott Davidson's books. Must check if she has a book coming out.
Interesting, Joanne is not like Danielle Steele, she is a natural which is reflected in her characters. Looking forward to the next release.
Joanne Fluke (born around 1943 in Swanville, Minnesota) is a female author who writes the Hannah Swensen Mysteries for Kensington Mysteries. Her mystery series is widely popular, and she is a national bestselling author; so far there are fifteen books published in the series. Her series has been known for its recipes, its comedy, and endings. Her books contain romance as well.
She currently lives in southern California.
Happy reading.

Outdoors

As I progress in years, I begin to understand what is important. My last posting mentioned the birds that I had seen on my walk with a friend. At a performance that evening, I mentioned the birds to the audience of seniors. To my surprise at the end of the performance one of the audience members came up and mentioned how much she enjoyed my talk about the outdoors and birds. It seems that some of the seniors do not get out much and she made a point telling me this fact. The concierge seemed to think that they get out but not to the real outdoors and not all of them. It is something that they miss and are pleased when someone can come and tell them about it. Second hand is better than nothing. Something that I must remember in my presentations.
When visiting with someone who is not able to get out much, talk about the outdoors. Help them see the rest of the world.

Birds are coming back!

Yesterday, I went for a walk in Ajax along the lake with a friend. We do this a couple times a year and it was lovely. Cold but the walk was good and we walked for an hour which was good. If it was warmer we might have managed more but that was enough.
While on our walk, we saw hundreds of Canada Geese near the parking lot to the park. We have seen a few before but this was an amazing number and as we drove out more arrived. Who could believe the sight?
While walking, we came across a number of robins. I am used to seeing a few at a time but we counted at least 10. They seemed to be gathering. Also Juncos which are lovely little birds. Love to see them. Reminds me, maybe I should put some seed out for the birds. One lone dove, hope that the birds finds a mate soon or maybe the mate was nearby and I just did not notice.
Guess, this is a sign that spring is coming. Told the seniors where we played last night about the birds and one of the seniors commented that she enjoyed hearing about the birds. Nice to know that people listen to what I say and enjoy it.

Orange Cornmeal Cake

This is a recipe that I tried yesterday. Since I have posted it, it was a success. Enjoy.

Orange Cornmeal Cake

For an even crunchier topping, you can use sanding sugar in place of granulated sugar in Step 3 (I have no idea what sanding sugar and have never seen it.) Look for it in the baking section of your grocery store.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: serves 8

Ingredients:
½ cup olive, plus more for pan
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar, plus 1/3 cup for topping
½ cup dry white wine (or orange juice) –used orange juice and it was excellent
1/ ¼ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
½ cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
Orange segments, for serving (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush bottom and sides of an 8-inch round cake pan with oil, line bottom with a round of wax or parchment paper, and brush with oil.
In a large bowl, whisk together oil, eggs, 1 cup sugar, and wine (orange juice) until smooth. Add flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and orange zest, whisk gently to combine.
Pour batter into prepared pan; sprinkle top evenly with remaining 1/3 cup sugar (topping will be thick). Bake until cake begins to pull away from sides of pan and a tester inserted in center comes out clean. 35 to 40 minutes.
Cool in pan 20 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake; invert cake gently onto a plate, and remove parchment paper. Reinvert cake onto a rack to cool completely. Serve with orange segments, if desired.

Made: March 3, 2012- excellent
(Martha Stewart recipe)

Lack of Rigour the culprit

At last someone who agrees with me. Often, I see ideas about education that are feel good but not necessarily what I consider appropriate. It is interesting because I still supply at a school that is predominately Chinese. The students do extremely well academically. They want rigour in the academic setting. They work hard and are not looking for less academic work but want to prove that they can do well and they are successful in this endeavour.
Katherine Birbalsingh, Canadian raised and Oxford trained had concluded that students need rigour in their education training. They are unable to spell or even look up words in the dictionary. These are only a few of the problems that she has noticed. Numeracy is also an issue. McDonald's has training in numeracy because employees have difficulty making change. Katherine has taught for 10 years so she has experience in the educational system.
I am pleased to see that there are those who have misgivings about the fun philosophy in education. Wonder if she will be able to turn things around in the school she is planning to start?

Seeds, the play

Last night, we went to the Distillery area to see a play put at the Young Centre for the Arts. It was put on in the theatre used by Soul Pepper. The play was Seeds by Annabel Solitar starring Eric Peterson of Corner Gas fame, and Lisa Repo-Martell who is one of favourite live actresses.
The issues was Monsanto and the Genetically Modified Seeds. Over the course of the play there were many issues raised. I would recommend that you do more reading about the issue or better yet go and see the play.

Whitney buried with Jewels

While I think that people should be buried with respect, I question that they should be buried with a fortune in jewels. Yesterday, I heard a report on the radio that Whitney Houston was buried with $500,000 in jewels. My goodness, what those jewels could do. Support her daughter for starters. Go to charity. Many things besides be buried with the star. What would the purpose have been to do this. I certainly hope that the story is incorrect.
What would you have done?

Music gets into your head

Neuroscientist Daniel Levitan likes to quote sheriff Andy Griffith when it comes to Classical Music: "Opera ain't nothin' but a bunch of hollering but it's high class hollering."
His mission is to demystify classical music and open it up to those who might have felt it was too distant or difficult for them to enjoy.
"I want to empower the listener to realize music is meaningful and interesting without any prior background," he says in an interview from Vancouver where he was made a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for "bring science to the public."
The McGill University professor of psychology and neuroscience is also a musician, playing the clarinet, sax, guitar and electric bass in both jazz and rock bands. It's been a natural progression to join the two interests in his research.
He returns to the Koerner Hall for a second session of Beethoven and Your Brain. Fascinating that people are interested and want to become involved.
Need to study more.

Double Chocolate Muffins

Yes, I am finally back to baking. Checked the freezer and nearly all the Double Chocolate Muffins are gone. Wow, they must be good.

Double Chocolate Muffins

You'll adore baking a basket of these delicious muffins. They're easy to make and are a gift for any chocolate lover.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 20 minutes

Makes: 18 muffins

Ingredients:
2 cups (500ml) all purpose flour
2/3 cup (150 mL) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder
1 tsp (5 mL) baking soda
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) buttermilk or yogurt
1 cup (250 mL) packed brown sugar
1/3 (75 mL) vegetable or Canola oil
2 eggs
2 tsp (10 mL) pure vanilla extract
1 cup (250 mL) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375oF (190oC). Grease or line 18 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk buttermilk, sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients.
4. Stir just until batter is combined. Add chocolate chips and gently mix into batter. Be careful not to over mix the muffin batter. Place batter into prepared pans.
5. Bake in preheated oven 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in centre of muffin comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

Tips:
1. Try mixing it up by using milk chocolate or white chocolate chips or a combination of any of your favourite.

Smucker Foods of Canada Corps: First Made February 16, 2012

Music's Power to heal the brain

Medieval churches were so convinced of music's mind altering powers that they forbade dissonant chords such as the tritone, the "Devil in Music". Although their fears were unfounded, the priests were right about one things: "Music really can rewire the brain."
Neuroscientists are studying music a medical intervention for patients with conditions such as stroke, speech loss and Parkinson's disease.
Unlike drug therapies and surgical brain implants, musical interventions are safe, enjoyable and noninvasive. "There is essentially no downside."
In the near future, Dr. Fujioka and colleagues throughout Ontario may combine their efforts at the University of Toronto's new Music and Health Research Collaboratory Operating within the Faculty of Music building, the initiative will bring together experts in medicine, neuroscience and psychology to decode how musical interventions work and explore the limits of their potential.
Music is complex and stimulates the brain in all kinds of ways, say Amy Clements-Cortes, a professor of music therapy at the University of Windsor. For example, her research has found that listening to live versus taped versions of the same music makes a difference in patients pain perception. "Live music was significantly more effective."
Will be interesting to find out where this research takes scientists.

Family Day!

It is Family Day. Must say after heading downtown that many people are enjoying the day. The subway was packed, more people than on a Saturday or week day during the middle of the day. The movie that we went to was very busy and again on a usual day even Sunday, there are not usually so many people.
People good for you for embracing this day. We need to get out and enjoy more time like this with friends and families.

Family Day Weekend

I think that people have finally accepted Family Day weekend decided to enjoy it. Yesterday, I took students to perform at Sunnybrook for the veterans and on the way traffic was already building up. At first, I did not understand why but after some thought realized that people were getting away early just like in the summer. This morning when we went to the market streets were empty. People were relaxing and sleeping in. We had somethings to find and luckily did at the market. Because we were up early decided that we would go out for breakfast which was most enjoyable. All was good.
The next two days we are going to sleep in. Monday, we will go to a movie and relax.
Sunday, I am going to meet a number of former students for dinner. Who knew that I would still meet students years after I taught them. Honoured that the students care enough to want to get together.
Hope that everyone is enjoying the Family Day Weekend.

Donations

Recently, the wife of a former colleague of Michael's passed away. She died of a stroke. Going to donate money to the Heart and Stroke foundation. Seems like the right thing to do. Flowers are nice but the flowers that were at the funeral were given to some of the attendees at the funeral. We were lucky recipients of an arrangement. How much better to give money to the foundation. Hopefully some of the money actually goes to research.
Think about what you can do.

Black Dressmaker: Slavery to White House

Recently, I noticed on a friend's blog posting an article about a Black Dressmaker who went from Slavery to the White House. Elizabeth Keckley was the former slave who bought her freedom and became the personal dressmaker, stylist and confidant to First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln. What an incredible story. This would be amazing today but in the early 1800's for a person to be born into slavery in 1818 and then to sew her way out of servitude and into the White House is an incredible story. One that we do not hear about.
Keckly who became skilled as a dressmaker managed to negotiate and arrange for her freedom paying it off in 1860. By 1861, she had a full atelier in Washington, D.C. She became the dressmaker and confidant to Mary Todd Lincoln.
You can read her story at www.styleite.com/media/elizabeth-keckly-black-history-month/
Maybe you will discover the story of others who deserve to have their story told.

Music motivates us

The other day, there was an article in the Globe and Mail by Mark Fenske about how to "Power up with music: How it motivates us". Music can be a powerful force. In fact, it is sometimes banned (along with steroids and stimulant drugs) to prevent athletes from gaining an unfair advantage during competitions. Why? Because of its capacity to energize and increase endurance.
The driving beats and locomotive thunder of bass-heavy dance music have undoubtedly fuelled many of running sessions.
One of music's energizing effects comes from its ability to engage the body's sympathetic nervous system. The activation of this system readies the body for action whenever we face a challenge in our environment.
Music is comprised of patterns of sounds that have been shown to affect levels of physical excitability. A simple increase in the pace of the music we listen can quicken our pulse and accelerate our breathing And this can be great for physical exercise or a boring task that might lull you to sleep.
The article suggests further ways that music motivates us. Wonderful.

My Pop Choir

I have been involved in music most of my life and it is with great pleasure that I see that others are finding an outlet in music. Recently, My Pop choir which seems to have modeled itself after Glee (however I do realize that the Glee choir is a course and probably auditioned- it is the repertoire that attracts singers)or choirs of that ilk is expanding. The choir costs $20 per session or $200 per ten week term. This means that the directors have found a means of making money. Interesting. It seems that the original session was a great success and all but two people signed up again. The two that did not sign up have headed south for the winter.
Hope that it continues because this is a wonderful outlet for people. The next step will be to put on some concerts. Wonder if that will happen?

Access codes

Do you have this problem? How to keep track of the many access codes and passwords that you have? I believe that I will have to do what Martha Stewart does and keep a log of all the codes. I have e-mails out to two different groups about account access. Thank goodness, it is not an emergency. Wish that I could just use the same code or password but that does not seem acceptable. Even if you had a wonderful memory, it would be very difficult to keep the many accounts all lined up.
Decided that I need to be more proactive about keeping track of all these accounts and that seems more difficult than I thought.
Hopefully, I will find a way to do this without too much difficulty. Will let you know once I get a handle on all the accounts.

Other leaders

Now that I have checked some innovators, two to be exact, it will be interesting to see how many others have issues. Does the ability to be a leader require attributes that are outside the norm? Wonder. If it is true, then what do we do to foster the talents of those outside the usual paths?
Some food for thought.

Aspergers

Right now, I am listening to a recording of the book about Steven Jobs. From what I can tell, he had a degree of Aspergers. At least that would help explain his unusual behaviours and difficult interpersonal relationships. Interestingly, today there is an article in the business section of the Toronto Star about Mark Zuckerberg, founder of facebook and he seems to exhibit some of the same kind of behaviours toward employees as Steve Job. Sadly, each of them abused their employees to a certain extent. Steve Wozniak was a different kind of boss but did not want to get involved in the kind of interplay that Steve Jobs did. In the article about Mark Zuckerberg, a former employee Yishan Wong found that after awhile he could not continue to work in the pressure cooker. He was a good employee but left. The article does not get into what caused him to leave. Probably in a number of years, there will be someone who writes about Zuckerberg. Wonder if anyone will see the similarities in behaviours.

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to us. It is amazing. I can not believe that it has been 38 years. Who would have believed it. We have been married for 38 years. We will celebrate on Saturday when we have time to enjoy our visit to a restaurant. No gifts because we have everything or most of everything. What we want most is to travel and that has to be scheduled and will be don't worry.
Hope that everyone else has a wonderful day.

Glen Gardiner

In my capacity as the person who books groups for the McMichael Gallery, I have had the pleasure of booking many performers over the years. When I first started, I booked Glen and Edith Gardiner and their proteges. Little did I know the history behind this pair of musicians. Today, the Globe and Mail had an obituary for Glen Gardiner who passed away shortly before Christmas. I did not know that he was in a prisoner of war camp, the one that built the tunnels for the Great Escape. Also did not know Glen Gardiner's history as an opera singer and teacher at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Amazing how much we do not know about others and how modest some people are.
Judging from the way that Edith spoke about Glen, theirs was a loving match that lasted 65 years. What a love story!

Steve Jobs

It was tragic that Steve Jobs died too young. Because of some of his beliefs he looked places that were not too helpful in his medical condition.
It is interesting and also lucky that his biography was written at this time in his life. There was the chance for input from a number of sources who might not talk now. What I also find fascinating is that he has so many quirks that he did not seem to mind having exposed. Or is it that he was not in a position to object. His illness was the guiding force in his life at the end.
He was a man that had many quirks and some of them very unpleasant. I am certain that I would have found him extremely difficult to work for. People like him achieve results but at what cost? What I find interesting is that Steve Wozniak was the real creative force behind the computers but his style was so different that Jobs became the public face behind Apple. Wozniak also had medical issues which prevented him doing more.
A good read, Steve Jobs. It exposes a man that some of us did not know.

Newt Gingrich's win

I am puzzled by the lengthy process that Americans go through to pick a president. It will not end until the parties meet in August. Then the actual presidential race begins. You need to have deep pockets and many friends. There must be an industry based on American elections. I do not know of any other country to that goes through this kind of process. It certainly makes for good television. Who would believe that someone like Newt Gingrich could be in the running? Married three times? That must be a record for presidential candidates. Issues when he was in congress. What has happened to the United States? Another candidate who has incredible wealth and pays minimal taxes. Can Americans not see the hypocrisy in all of this?
Will be watching and puzzled.

Percy Faith's sister

If you read my other blog the Taffanel Wind Ensemble, you would know that today the group played for Percy Faith's sister. You never know where and when you are going to meet someone who is connected. She admits to not having the musical talent that her brother who was the first born in the family had. Hope to see her at the seniors' home again.
Must make sure that I practise for future performances. Another one on Thursday.

No Cruises for us

After the news on the weekend, cruises are done for us. What a horror. The captain of a cruise ship sailed to close to an island so that a signal could be sent to someone on shore. If as he done in the past, the cruise past went well, there would be no problem but this was not the case this time. The ship struck rocks and suddenly without warning the ship capsized. Sadly, it seems that the crew was not well trained and the crew abandoned ship with the captain one of the first off. The crew did not give passengers clear messages as to what they needed to do.
Even after the coast guard pleaded with the captain to return and help with the rescue he refused. It was every person on their own and it seems that there are still at least 25 people are still unaccounted for.
This has certainly tainted my vision as to how well crews are trained. The crew member who was found with the broken leg needs to be congratulated. He had gone back to help passengers and crew. Not leave everyone on their own.

The Practical Gardener

Yesterday, I attended a gardening session at the Toronto Botanical Centre. It was mainly for the Master Gardeners. If this is what they are learning, I really do not want to become a master gardener. I am glad that some people are interested and ready to man the phone lines when people have questions and also answer e-mail questions. I am sure that there are many questions to answer. However, was not impressed with one of the presentations which was simply a presentation of Perennials-The good, the bad and the ugly. This was one persons opinion and partly determined by where she lives and what kind of gardening she wishes to do determined by her interests and many gardening pursuits.
Will be more selective about future presentations.

Winter is here

At long last, winter has arrived. It is nearly the middle of January. I am so glad that I was able to stay home and not worry about driving on the slippery roads. Later, I will do some shovelling. So far, I have managed to get mail done from yesterday; plenty of bills to pay. Amazing how they all seem to arrive at once. Will do some reading, practising and other indoor activities.
I am hoping that the snow does stop tomorrow and we can drive around safely.
If you have to go out in this weather and it is snowing be safe.

Executive Pay

Recently, many of us watched the protest in major cities asking why the 1% receive so much pay. In fact they are receiving what the 99% receives. A serious discrepancy. Today, the Globe and Mail ran an editorial by Margaret Wente with the title "Bringing executive pay back down to earth." Now, that is a surprise since she writes for the Globe and Mail a business paper. She mentions a bank executive who used to run the bank before stock options and before executives made 250 times more than the average employee. Her point is that CEO's pay is related to performance but points out that CEO pay has increased by a factor of 8 in 20 years. In the beginning,pay was tied to performance much like sports and the arts. The incentive that corporations picked for CEOs was stock options. The way to do well was increase the price of the stock which was not related to selling more stuff or making more money. Today's hero is Steve Jobs who lived in a relatively ordinary house but what Margaret Wente forgets is that he managed to earn a incredible amount of money so there are still things to exam.
The questions that is being asked once again: "How is it that executives get to make lots of money even if the company doesn't do well?"
Hopefully, the protesters will look at this and start targeting the CEO's buy a stock or two and be in the position to ask questions.

Bank fees

Yesterday, I checked one of my bank accounts. This particular account does not have a pass book and is only on-line. It is a virtual account. When I checked it, I found that there was a $5 fee for transferring money out. Interesting that there is no fee for putting money in since the work is the same. $5 for a transfer of little over $100! Oh my. Now, apparently since the account was opened, the rules changed and the account must now have $25,000 in order to avoid fees. I do not remember receiving notification about this but it could have happened. I would never have believed that a high interest account (interest is 1.2%-that is now considered high interest) could pay so little and charge so much.
Who could believe that banking institutions that earn so much money already want more?

Computer is back on Line

After a lovely New Years Day with friends, our computer failed. We did not know what caused the problem but when I called for assistance I was told that it was the power cord. I found it hard to believe that the power cord was the problem but when the part arrived, the computer was up and running in a few minutes. I would not have believed that this part could cause the connectivity problem.
Now that we are back on-line, I have checked my e-mails which numbered nearly 100 after a 24 hour period. Some of the e-mails are from conferences some of which I should unsubscribe. It is very rare that I actually do something that Martha Stewart suggests. Some of the suggestions are interesting but I will never try them.
Strange how unconnected I felt despite the fact that I do have a Blackberry and could see messages on there.
Hope that none of you are disconnected for any length of time.