Happy Halloween!

Photo taken October 28, 2012, at  a viewing of Rocky Horror Picture Show.  Love fishnets. :)

Mooooooooooooooove!

To my daughter who feels clumsy

It runs in the family. I'm absent-minded and clumsy. And very randomly too. Last night I put my dinner in the microwave for 2 minutes. When I took it out I managed to drop it on the kitchen floor. At least it was not as epic as the curried eggplant of a few years back.

So I had to make myself some form of dinner and there was a giant cauliflower I'd picked up that was screaming to be eaten, so I made grilled cauliflower for dinner. I thankfully did not drop this, or burn myself taking the dish in and out of the oven.

Oven grilled cauliflower

Cows Bouncing on a Trampoline.

My favourite all time screen saver in a Linux one with cows seeming to bounce off a trampoline. It's not any kind of cow, but it's a dairy cow, as stipulated by the co-worker who grew up on a dairy farm.

My Linux guy knows I get a kick from this screen saver so whenever he borrows one of my display walls, he leaves this screen saver running at night.

I've been wishing for years now that someone recompiles this screen-saver and makes it work under windows. I'd LOVE to have bouncing cows.  I would let them bounce all over the place.

Of course the other option would be for me to install Linux at home.

This is useful for next summer

I was sent a great link on how to portage a canoe, and I wanted to make sure I find it again next summer, so it's here.

Didn't go canoeing as much as I would have liked this summer. Went the first time in August at Rideau River Provincial Park in Ontario.  Then again Labour day week-end 4 day canoe camping trip and then one last time in Riviere des Milles Isles on a Saturday in September were it was exceptionally hot.

I hope to start canoeing in May next year. So many places to visit so little time!

Ma-ma-ma-ma-mangoes....

[Sing to La La La Bamba....]

Currently craving mangoes and the company of a particular man who likes mangoes.

Just sayin....

Vigil for the fallen soldiers in Montreal Tomorrow. at 6pm

Some of the Muslim women with whom I used to protest what was going on in Syria last year and the year before, are having a vigil for the fallen Canadian soldiers of last week. I think it's especially significant that it was organized by Muslims, to point out to those around them that not all Muslims are extremists and that most love their adopted country and some have even been here for generations.

I want to go, not sure I will find the time. Here are the details.

I'm not going to say much on the political cartoon in the Journal the Montreal which had a ceinture fleche as a headscarf, under an arabic banner that says "There is only one God". The two French guys who adopted the radical Islam as a religion were not Metis and they were mentally unstable. They could have chosen any other radical movement. I bet in the 70's they would have been part of the FLQ!  However political cartoons are often incredibly offensive and this one was no different.

Two dresses made this morning.

Felt really worn out yesterday so spent part of the day in bed. I napped from 10-3pm . .. longer then a night of sleep, but I seemed to need it because despite that I was asleep by 11pm last night.

This morning of course I was awake at the crack of dawn around 5:30. I started to sew two dresses I cut Saturday night, and finished them before noon today.

Butterick B5313 with a Rayon knit

Butterick B5313 in Rayon knit

McCalls M6957

McCalls M6957

Project of the week

McCalls 6315 and some starry print.

Constellation dress

I made most of this dress last Sunday but finished the hemming over the week and the last finishing touches on Friday afternoon after work.

I love this pattern. This is the 2nd dress made with this pattern and I made 2 dress/pants back in the day. this pattern is back from the 90's. 

Home Grown Terror

My first experience with home grown terror was with the FLQ. I remember like it was yesterday, the kidnapping of Pierre Laporte in October 1970. I wasn't quite 8 when it happened and I was never the same again.  It was the first time I became aware of something outside my immediate environment.  I lost innocence that day. I realized how scary or dangerous the world could be.

Of course what followed included the Wars measures act, and having the army deployed in Montreal. To this day I'm still a little suspicious of mailboxes.

This week, there was 2 attacks on Canadian Armed forces personnel on Canadian soil. One in St Jean du Richelieu Monday, and the one in Ottawa yesterday.  Terror attacks meant to scare the fuck out of us. Perhaps ISIS incited. After all no self-respecting Muslim would ever join the likes of ISIS. They are nothing more then a terror group and a cult, that kills real Muslims. [70% or so of Syrians are Muslim, mostly Sunni] Canada is supposed to join the US fighting against ISIS in Syria and Iraq and ISIS made threats against Canadians, that we wouldn't even be safe in our own beds.....

For the record, I still support the Syrian people in their quest to not be led by murdering fools. Whether it be Assad or ISIS, neither are good for Syria  or the Middle East. 

I'd like to give my sympathies to the families of the 2 dead Canadian soldiers. They both did die serving their country but they didn't have to die. Gunned down or mowed down by  a car for no good reason except someone was a fucked up dick who instead of giving himself a good swift kick in the ass and getting on with life decided to kill someone else. Cowards really.

My daughter in the Navy called me yesterday to tell me that she was ok, and also that she could be deployed in the next 48 hours and was worried she would have to leave her cats without anyone to take care of them.

Some cute for Hump Day

What's so interesting on the laptop anyways, Am I not cute enough?

You sure you wouldn't rather use this camera?

If you love someone with ADD/ADHD

This article is to the point.  The one line I've heard way too much in my life is "control your emotions".  Though I must admit that since I stopped getting angry over things I have no control over, I've been in a better place and less likely to blow up.

Three Years later and it finally gets it's day in court.

I blogged nearly 3 years ago about the UV tagging of protesters removed from Square Victoria.

There was an article written nearly 3 years ago as well, about the same topic. 

My friend who got UV tagged was in court yesterday. The city was trying to say the group action should be thrown out of court.

I'd love to find something about the court case but googling brought me nowhere. 

A dress with a blue Ponte type knit.

McCalls M6889 and a blue Ponte type knit

Dress made with blue Ponte type knit and McCalls M6889

I got this knit on St Hubert street in a store where every fabric was $1.99 a meter. I took whatever was left on the roll, which was a little less then 2Ms.  I decided that I was making this knit dress with this blue fabric a month ago and cut the pattern pieces. When I started to sew it Saturday I realized I was missing 2 panels. I had to improvise the last 2 panels with the fabric scraps remaining. I also had to wait till Fabricville opened Sunday at noon, to pick up a zipper for it.   I managed to still make a nice dress. Really like the pattern. I had to make a few adjustments, the back neck was gaping.  Will be making other dresses from this pattern.

I now have five

My sarong collection has reached 5. It was my first fruitful trip to value village in over a month. In fact there was 3 Sarongs at value village yesterday. One was black and white, obviously never used. One was royal blue, but with an obnoxious print. Then there was the one I bought. the cheapest too, at $2.99, but with a really nice print.

Sarong picked up yesterday.

Purple Sarong picked up in September

I've already worn the purple one I picked up in September, when I canoed in Riviere des mille iles to avoid sunburn on my legs.

It's Sunday, it's all about cute!

All the clothes are mine, mine mine.....

I'm a pretty boy!

mmmmmm

I like your fabric, All the fabric is mine!

Great-granny Clara's French Quebecois Meatball and Pigs Feet Ragout

I was asked to post my Pig feet stew recipe. It's one of the few recipes that was passed down to me that I have mastered. Go to this entry for photos.   I associate this recipe with Christmas dinner at my grandparents. This is a very traditional meal.  I love the smell of  the stew cooking.

Great-granny Clara's French Quebecois Meatball and Pigs Feet Ragout
[Ragout de pattes de cochon avec boulettes, selon la recette de mon arriere grand-mere,Clara]

Preparing the Pigs Feet

- 4 or 5 pieces of pig's feet, the large part of the hock should be about 4-5" (roughly 3-4 lbs)
- cold water, 10 cups.
- salt/pepper to taste
- 4 large onions minced finely
- 1 garlic clove minced finely
- 1 teaspoon of sage

Cook at low heat until the all the meat detaches itself from the bone.
Throw out everything but the meat and the broth. You should have about 8 cups of broth left. Refrigerate.
Once it's gotten cold, you can scoop off excess fat for those of you who like to keep their meals as low-fat as possible.

Preparing the Meatballs

- 2 1/2-3lbs lean ground pork (will make 40-50 balls)
- 4 large onions minced finely
- 2 slices of bread, finely crumbed
- 1/4 cup finely chopped celery
- salt/pepper to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon of savoury
- 1/2 teaspoon of marjoram

Mix everything together and use flour to roll your meatballs. Fry the meatballs in a pan until they are well browned on all sides.

For the sauce, you need to brown some flour. According to Clara use 3 tablespoons of flour to one cup of broth. At low heat brown your flour until it's a uniform color and not burnt.
Mix the flour into the heated broth and stir until the texture is uniform. Add the meat balls into the broth. Add salt and pepper.

Take 1 cinnamon stick and 10 cloves, put in a fabric scrap and tie together with string that will be attached to the pot handle and let the herb bag soak in the mixture.

Cook at low heat for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. By then the sauce should be rich and thick.
Remove and discard the spice bag before serving. Cool to room temperature before refrigerating.

Too much heat in Middle East

I sometimes follow a blog from a articulate Yemeni, she blogs about women's rights in Yemen

This past month's sewing projects

McCalls 6642

My friend modelling the PJ pants

McCalls 6642

MIL modelling the PJ pants I made for her

stress sucks

Here I thought I left work at work, that I'd learned to handle my stress and  so on.

Wednesday when my friend picked me up from the train station and asked how I was doing and explained that my lower abdomen was in a knot and I had waves of nausea, she suggested it was stress and then perhaps that it was my date tonight that was doing it.

Well no. While I do get nervous before a date {usually in the 30 minutes before it happens} never to this level. However today was the major release that has probably been the source of my lower abdomen distress.

I had stomach issues also about 3-4 weeks ago. Also before the beta release. This project has been particularly stressful. I'm used to working with a team of engineers who can generally fix anything I throw at them.  If the software issue I find, turns out to be hardware or ASIC, we can find a work-around. Our engineers are really creative at circumventing windows limitations even.  Sadly because this is a joint effort with another company, well some problems will never get resolved.  I'm not used to having to live with what I consider nasty bugs, and which I feel lowers the quality of the product.

So essentially this release has really stressed me.  And of course the nasty pains came out MONDAY after 3 idyllic days spent with my friends in Kingsbury. In fact the stomach pains came out pretty bad the last afternoon I was supposed to be there. 

Today finally I woke up without my tummy in a knot. Sure I made the packages for web release yesterday and by quitting time, nothing catastrophic had been found. One wrong string that I suspect is stuck in cement, which makes things look inconsistent, but certainly not a show stopper!