*sniffle*

Just watched Barbara Walters' 20/20 interview with Terri Irwin, which I recorded off the TV on Wednesday night. Bawled like a baby throughout. Very, very sad.

Quick! Where's My Passport?!?

Just speaking with my boss earlier - turns out he definitely wants me to attend my project's big annual meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam this winter! YAY!!

The meeting will be held from 11-15 December, but I will probably have to leave with the rest of the group (there will be about ten of us going from Halifax) on the 8th or 9th - need to arrive a day early and get over the jetlag, before the meetings begin. We will probably aim to leave Hanoi the evening of the 15th.

While I'm certainly looking forward to Hanoi, I must admit I'm more excited by the fact that flights there are usually routed via Hong Kong. I've always wanted to see Hong Kong and it seems likely that we'll have to spend one night there, anyway - but if it doesn't add anything to the cost of my ticket (unlikely) then I will see if I can spend an extra night in Hong Kong, under my own steam. That'd be amazing.

I tell you, after two years of planning travel for everyone else on this project, it's very, very nice to finally be invited to travel myself. I can't wait!

Class List

The Registrar's Office at the university where I'm teaching next term sent me a class list today in the post. There are 28 students registered in my class so far, and I'm hoping - given the time that marking essays and exams takes - that the numbers won't get much higher (there's a cap of 50 on the class). There's bound to be a few latecomers who will register towards the end of term, but some will undoubtedly drop out just after the class starts.

So far, all my students are second- and third-years. Interestingly, fully half of them are male - which is unusual given that this particular university is 80 percent women. Also, only half of them are history majors. The rest are a mix of English, psychology, and a few others, along with the usual handful of general studies and 'undecided' types.

I must say, I'm quite looking forward to meeting them all.

RS Addendum

Weird thing I just remembered from the show on Saturday night. Several times, Mick Jagger referred to his location as 'Haligonia'.

Heh. Cool!

Rolling Stones in Halifax: A Bit of Alright

Stones show last night was amazing. Sound and video were crystal-clear, the lighting was spectacular, and the band seemed to be in great form. We got two solid hours of music, and the reports today say that the crowd was over 50,000 strong.

But the lead-up? Jesus, what a trial of endurance. My parents and uncle ended up arriving yesterday afternoon (a day late), and after having some lunch, we headed out to the show just before 4 pm. None of the buses seemed to be running properly as all the streets around Halifax Common were closed for the show, so we ended up walking the two miles to the concert site. Started to drizzle as we walked. We did go prepared, in rain gear, but we didn’t anticipate that the rain would never stop!

By the time we arrived at 4.30, Sloan were just finishing their set – I must have gotten the times mixed up because I thought the music was due to start then (I was sorry to miss them). We’d brought a tarp with us, but the ground was already wet by that point and we thought we’d stand for a bit. Well, we ended up standing for the next six hours – through the break after Sloan, through Alice Cooper and his usual props (python, woman with whip, etc. *yawn*), through another break. Then Kanye West came on. He wasn’t bad, but I’m not sure that his act translates very well live – I was expecting more from him. At one point, his backing singers and his string section were in different keys, which was a bit painful.

After Kanye finished, it was another hour before the Stones took the stage. By that time, the flannel lining of my raincoat had begun wicking water from the cuffs and hems and was mostly soaked – I was freezing. That, coupled with being very stiff from standing for hours, and the continued driving rain, meant we were a bit of a subdued crowd to say the least. But everything came to life for the main show. Everybody was dancing and had a good time, the cold and wet were forgotten, and the final two hours whizzed by.

Afterwards, we couldn’t wait to get home. No chance of a taxi or bus without a long wait, though, so we walked back. Never was I so glad to get inside, put on dry clothes and sit down! I was in a world of pain – but it was worth it in the end. We all had a great time and the show exceeded my expectations.

Almost Time!

Well! The Strolling Bones...er, Rolling Stones are nearly upon us. In honour of the event, my parents are actually closing the business tomorrow and will drive up from CB in the morning with my uncle - dodgy Jeep and all. They should be here by lunchtime, but will have to amuse themselves until I get home from work. Luckily, it's going to be a nice day tomorrow so I'm sure they'll have a grand time strolling the waterfront downtown. They won't want to hang out at our place, anyway - at long last (and about three months late), workmen are due to arrive tomorrow and start putting a new roof on the house. Talk about lousy timing.

The concert is Saturday afternoon/evening. According to a friend of ours who is working security, as of last week there had been approximately 35,000 tickets sold - and the Commons can accommodate up to 60,000. There's a crazy confluence of events in town this weekend, and the whole city will be heaving. Saturday night, in addition to the Stones show, there's an exhibition hockey game at the Metro Centre between the New York Islanders and the Boston Bruins, another concert by Sarah Harmer at the Cohn, and the closing of the Atlantic Film Festival. Whew.

Unfortunately, at the moment, the weather office is forecasting a 40% chance of showers on Saturday. Argh. We'll have to go to the Commons armed with our waterproofs. The security and promoters seem determined to make this outdoor show as uncomfortable as possible - amongst the list of forbidden items are chairs of any kind, coolers, umbrellas, and all food and drink (so you'll spend even more money at the concession stands, of course). So we'll just have to make the best of it. But the Stones - not to mention Kanye West - will be worth it, I'm sure!

Engagement

Last night, we heard the very happy and welcome news that my sister-in-law L. and her boyfriend M. have just gotten engaged. Delighted for them! M. is a super guy and fits right in with the family, and it seems a perfectly natural match to me.

Recent Reading

Wow - it's been a long time since I did a Recent Reading post. Sadly, it's because I didn't have a whole lot of time this past spring and summer to read for pleasure. And with my teaching coming up in the new year, that probably isn't going to change anytime soon.

It took me months to slog through it, but by God, a few weeks ago I finally finished Near A Thousand Tables: A History of Food by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto. It was quite a bit drier than I'd expected, but happily became more readable towards the end. I don't want to think a whole lot about theories of consumption and the like just before bed, you know? But there were sufficient fun facts and anecdotes to spur me on to finish reading it. I enjoyed Margaret Visser's Much Depends On Dinner far more, though.

During the dog days of July, I really needed a ripping yarn to transport me to another world - and fortunately, J. had just loaned me her copy of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. As was the case with his American Gods, I really wasn't sure if I'd like it - but after reading just the first few pages, I was completely sucked in, and flew through it in no time. A gripping tale of parallel universes, set in London (though not the London we know) - great stuff. I guess I'm going to have to seek out more Gaiman now.

I've just started Ancestors of Avalon by Diana L. Paxson (after the fashion of Marion Zimmer Bradley), but am proceeding cautiously - J. has already read it and was not particularly impressed. And after that, I'm going to give Haruki Murakami's The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle a go. This is another very popular title that I've been resisting for quite a while as it didn't really seem like my cup of tea. But J. says it's great and that's opinion enough for me. ;-)

Learning How to Teach

When you work in the public sector, you've got to take advantage of perks whenever you encounter them. This week, I've been sitting in on some professional development seminars offered by the Centre for Learning and Teaching at work. They've kindly allowed me to participate (at no charge), even though the course I'm teaching next term is at another university here in the city.

Luckily, they have lots of informative sessions for would-be lecturers and teaching assistants, handily scheduled around lunchtime so it's easy for me to attend. Yesterday's session was on "Leading Classroom Discussions", and it was excellent - very practical, with lots of useful advice which got me thinking about different ways to get my students talking. Then today's session was on "Tips for First-Time Lecturers". Not a whole lot of new information there, but it was quite reassuring to find that my worries about this course are entirely common and normal.

There are a couple more sessions scheduled for later this autumn, which I'm looking forward to since getting off to such a great start this week. And when I got back to my office today, I found that my desk copy of this book (which will most likely become my course textbook) had been delivered. Sweet!

Jagshemash!

The Toronto Film Festival screened the new movie featuring one of Sacha Baron Cohen's comedic incarnations, Borat, at the weekend. Well, they tried, at least. After the star's triumphant red carpet arrival with a horse and cart, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan was screened for all of fifteen minutes before the projector broke. Seriously. You couldn't make it up! However, Cohen (as Borat) was ever gracious. "It is a very great honour to make a visit to the minor nation of Canadas," he noted. "Our countries are very similar, and not only because of the projector system."

I can't wait to see it.

A New Leaf

Autumn is unquestionably on its way. Thermometer down in the single digits this morning - a mere 9°C. And for the first time in months, I pulled a pair of tights out of the back of my drawer this morning and put them on. I guess I can lay off the daily self-tanner application now though, so that's OK.

Cracking good weekend in Montreal. Did a little shopping on arrival, then indulged in the culinary delights of a restaurant called Anise on Saturday evening. J. and I rolled out the boat and sampled their six-course tasting menu, with wine pairings. Absolutely fantastic stuff.

An Unexpected Journey

I'm flying up to Montreal this weekend - just for one night. Indulgent? Yeah, but not purposefully - and the flight is totally free.

Earlier this week, CanJet announced that it was suspending its scheduled service as of this Sunday, 10 September. What wasn't stated clearly in its press releases was that it would also be the end of its airmiles programme. I was only alerted to the problem on Tuesday, when my sister-in-law's boyfriend called to offer me a free one-way flight he'd earned with CanJet, which he was unable to use before it expired on Sunday.

Well, I'd earned myself a one-way flight with CanJet as well - plus, I had a $50 credit voucher that was sent to me a few months ago as a result of a serious delay on a previous CanJet flight I'd taken. So I then spent much of Tuesday morning on the telephone, trying to decide if and where I might go this weekend, to use the flight credits before they expired. In the end, I decided to fly up to Montreal Saturday morning, have a visit with J., and come back Sunday evening. Luckily, seats were still available at that point, and I was able to make a booking.

Obviously, a free flight to an exciting city is always a good thing. But I am a bit miffed about CanJet's closure. Not only will it likely mean higher air travel prices (with only two carriers now serving Atlantic Canada), but I'd been saving up those airmiles in anticipation of a possible trip to New York City next year. I'll have to start from scratch again with another airline now.

RIP Crocodile Hunter

My friend Jonathan (a snake-keeper and self-professed enthusiast of unusual and unloved animals) wrote this thoughtful and well-informed defence of the work of Steve Irwin in his blog yesterday.

Like most people, I found Irwin's show "Crocodile Hunter" a bit annoying, but I admired the work he did and the positive influence he had on children in particular. I was shocked to hear of his tragic death at the weekend.

Gifties

At work this week, a new crop of project trainees from Vietnam have arrived for the start of the new academic year. Very nice bunch - and as is customary, they have all arrived with gifts for me. It's lovely, but really a bit embarassing - a small token is one thing, but these gifts are becoming a little extravagant.

Today, I received a red silk top with a mandarin collar, a white silk dressing gown, a beige pashmina shawl, and a beaded evening bag. All very beautiful, I must say. But I feel a little bit bad about it. I know the trainees appreciate everything I do for them, but it is my job, after all. I get paid to help them - no need for gifts!

I have no idea how to communicate this to them without causing offence, though.

In the Garden - August

This past month, I discovered that (like June) there aren't a whole lot of August-blooming plants in the garden. Must rectify that when planning for next year. I will look into getting more dahlias, as well as some gladioli and phlox. As it stood, we had only the clematis (which started in mid-July, and lingered until about the third week of August), the new red daylilies, and the ever-stalwart red rosebush. Other than that, there were just plenty of weeds!

Luckily, I took a number of pics just around the garden generally, so I've put those in my Flickr album for August. While there wasn't much in the way of flowers, the garden was nevertheless at its greenest and most verdant last month.

Granny's Home Bakin'

It's a holiday, you're home from work, it's raining and generally miserable out, and you've no real plans for the day. What to do? Why, embark upon a time-consuming culinary experiment, of course.

While buying groceries on Saturday, I picked up some damsons, which are in season right at the moment. You know, those little purplish-blue plums with tart, yellowish-green flesh? You can usually only buy them between mid-August and early September. They're excellent for cooking, and I have very fond memories of a wonderful plum cake that my Babcia (i.e. my paternal grandmother) used to make. The cake itself has halved damsons baked into it, and it's topped by a sugary butter crumble. Delicious.

So, I rang my mother for the recipie. Of course, my grandmother (like most cooks of her generation) never used written recipies, so my mother just watched what she did one day, estimated as best she could, and wrote everything down. She and I talked over the method on the phone - I had forgotten that this cake is yeast-based, which was rather unnerving. Nonethless, I picked up some yeast this morning and decided to have a go at the recipie. I've never worked with yeast before, but luckily I had A. on hand to offer technical advice (he was a dab hand at bread-making in his youth).

Well...it took forever, but the results were very good, if I do say so myself. The cake dough itself required FOUR risings, at over an hour each time. I started the first rise at 1.30 pm, and the cake wasn't ready to put into the oven until 7.30 pm! Honestly, people just can't make stuff like this unless they're at home all day.


The trick with time-consuming stuff like this, of course, is to bake in bulk - which my grandmother did. I actually reduced the quantities in her original recipie by 80 percent! She would make 5 or 6 of these cakes at a time, then put them in the freezer (they freeze beautifully) so she could whip one out whenever company came round. Even the one cake above is huge - I put three-quarters of it in the freezer tonight, to eat later.

Herewith the recipie - despite my inexperience, it turned out deliciously well!

Babcia's Yeast Cake
(yields 5 big honkin' casserole-dish-sized cakes, so you better own a freezer or have a lot of friends)

Melt ¾ pound sweet (i.e. unsalted) butter with 2.5 cups sugar and 3 cups milk. Then dissolve 5 packets of yeast in ½ cup warm water; add 1 tsp. sugar to this mixture.

In a large bowl, mix the butter/sugar/milk mixture with 12 egg yolks and 4 whole eggs, the yeast, 4 tsp. of vanilla and about 5 lbs. flour "until it feels right" (?!?!). Knead until the dough comes off in your hands.*

Rub top of dough with some oil, cover, and put aside to rise. Allow to rise 3 times in total, punching the dough down after each rising.

Put dough in chosen pan/dish. Wash and split plums (raisins can be used if plums are out of season). Arrange on top of dough, skin sides down. Let dough rise for a 4th time.

Make crumble topping by blending together sweet butter, flour and sugar. Sprinkle generously over top of cake.

Bake at 300 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.

*Here I must admit to a heresy - I used the food processor. I put the flour in first, then added the butter mixture, eggs, vanilla and yeast, and blended for about a minute and a half. Then I turned it out and as the dough was still very sticky, I ended up having to add almost another cupful of flour and knead until it "felt right" and the dough started coming off my hands.

Chucking Out

Now that A. has finally finished insulating the storage spaces under the eaves in the spare bedroom upstairs, we're now able to put a lot of our superfluous stuff away into those spaces, and finally clear out the room (so that it could be used for...oh, I dunno...a bedroom, maybe).

Tonight I got A. to sit down and go through the remaining half-dozen boxes still to be sorted out upstairs, all of which contained his stuff. He'd packed and brought them from his parents' house shortly after we moved back here from Dublin. However, I should point out that in the process, he employed the A.G.M. Packing Technique™:

1. Pull out drawer from desk or dresser;
2. Dump contents into cardboard box;
3. Mutter "I'll deal with that later";
4. Move said box to new location and allow it to gather dust for years.

Happily, however, after he started going through the boxes in question, he realised that most of the contents were absolute rubbish. Out of the original six boxes, we ended up refilling two with meaningful items, and chucked the rest.

Very pleased about that, I am. The bad news is, there are at least a dozen more boxes where that came from, down in our basement!