home again home again jiggity jig

i've been home for less than 3 days, but it seems like much longer- like i'm in some sort of small-town time warp. the first couple of days were busy, seeing people, unpacking, getting settled back in. my head has been especially busy trying to figure out where i am and what the hell i'm doing back here. today, i started work back at rachel's bread where i worked all through high school. it was a busy day, and i was tired by the end of it, but i felt a gradual realization throughout the day that this is where i need to be right now. working at rachel's- chopping veggies, washing dishes, bagging bread, having engaging as well as light conversation with co-workers will, i hope, give my mind time to slow down a bit. after work, i bike over to my dad's place and he made me dinner while i took a nap on the couch. its nice to be close by so i can have more regular interactions with my family, rather than just one intense week over a holiday.

i haven't been back to goshen for more than a week or two in the last 3 years, since i graduated from high school. and i think that as my parents marriage dissolved a year and a half ago it became more appealing to avoid goshen. but i feel like after a roller-coaster that the last two years have been, goshen is where i need to be. i need to be here for the familiarity, for the sense of community and support, for the acceptance of my whole self that i feel so much more readily from those whom i have grown up with and known for long periods of my life. i need to be here to regain some equilibrium.

in other news, i just found out that i was awarded a nice scholarship from MMA for school next year that i applied for back in february. yeh! thanks for urging me to apply grams!

leavings

my last week in montreal was quite a whirlwind of work, spending time with friends, packing and goodbyes. here's a rundown monday to thursday i worked at least 30 hours at Maison de l'Amitié to help the registration run smoothly and train the next batch of teachers. although i've enjoyed the job, its been stressful these last few months and it was a good feeling to tie up loose ends and be finished on thrusday. in the last few weeks i had been putting in extra hours to prepare a manual for the new people who will be working for the program.

Thrusday night my mom got in to montreal. Friday morning we wandered around the plateau, did a few last minute things, shopped a bit, and ate at my favorite vegan restaurant for lunch. in the afternoon we cooked a big meal of homemade spring rolls (recipe soon to come!), coconut veggie curry over rice, and fresh fruit with orange-blossom water and dark chocolate for dessert. about 8 friends and roommates joined us and we had a really lovely time sharing food and stories.

Saturday we packed an in the afternoon mom and i went to a partner yoga workshop at with Karen at Heaven Yoga. It was really great, and i'm excited to learn some of the postures in my classes this summer!!

Sunday morning we left montreal and now we're in waterloo. Here, I put half my stuff in storage and saw a few friends and we're crashing at a hotel and will do the second leg of the trip to G-town tomorrow morning.

here are some pics from the workshop, more from the rest of the weekend to come once i get home

fruity muffins

INGREDIENTS
2 cup rolled oats, ground
2 cup flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1 T + Fresh)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1 cup mashed peaches
1/2-1 C blueberries
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 C plain yogurt

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
Place 1 cup rolled oats in a food processor and process until ground. In a large bowl, combine ground oats with flour, 1 tablespoon rolled oats, chopped walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the banana and vanilla. Stir in yogurt. Mix oat/flour mixture into egg mixture. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pans.
Topping: of brown sugar and cinnamon
Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

some spring shots

i'll admit it, i love kids on youtube.

don't have many interesting stories to tell of the past few days... i've just been a bookworm trying to prepare for my last exam wednesday. golly gee, i can't wait till its over! my time in montreal is winding down fast, i'll be leaving 2 weeks from yesterday to return to goshen for the summer!

here's a pretty yummy supper recipe i made up tonight:

savory veggies and beans over pasta
in a large pan or wok, sauté with olive oil
- small red onion, diced
- 4-6 cloves garlic, minced

Add
-1 cubed sweet potato (already cooked, baked or boiled)
-1 red pepper
- 1-2 cups chopped broccoli
- 1-2 cups chickpeas and/or black beans
- 1 cup tomato/pasta sauce
- 1 t salt
- 1 t cumin
- some chili pepper if you desire some heat

simmer until broccoli is cooked. serve over a bed of pasta.

the magical transformation of our fire escape....






its was emily's birthday and we wanting to something surprising and special. we succeeded overwhelmingly in both respects.
dinner was curried kabobs, pita, yogurt and cilantro sauce and sangria. then for dessert i made chocolate dipped fruit, since i got a number of compliments, here's the recipe. it's so simple.


chocolate + fruit= love
ingredients
- 8+ squares bakers chocolate
- 2-4 T butter/marg
- strawberries, pineapple, and/or dried apricots
- optional: ginger root, shredded coconut, chopped almonds or other nuts

- melt bakers chocolate in a double boiler with a couple tablespoons of butter (i did about 4 squares of unsweetened and 5 semisweet because i like it bitter).
-while its melting wash strawberries (leave the leaves on) and peal and cut pineapple into squares. also slice some thin pieces of raw ginger.
- holding the strawberries by the leaf or the pinapples pieces with a skewer, dip 2/3 the way in chocolate.
- set on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper.
- quickly, before the chocolate starts to harden sprinkle nuts, coconut, and sliced ginger onto chocolate.
(i recommend pineapple with ginger and/or coconut, and apricots with ginger and pecans or almonds. strawberries i prefer simple)
-refrigerate for about 1 hour for chocolate to harden.


after dessert, we drank chai tea, listened to music and basked in the glory of a warm spring evening spent amongst good friends.

Happy birthday two of my lovely friends: Darlana and Emily! I hope your days are as bright as the spring sunshine!

It’s a gorgeous day in Montréal. Everyone is out and about in tank tops and sandals, walking with friends, jogging, sitting along the streets at outdoor cafes. It’s glorious.
I sat on the fire escape and studied for about an hours and I’m looking a little pink. Now I know, sunburn=> skin cancer=> bad, but it really is a bit of a thrill to have the possibility of getting a sunburn after this looong, cold winter. In the late afternoon me and suz were both hungry, so we went to the Vietnamese place down the street and got spring rolls (how appropriate and delicious they were).

On a much heavier note…The snow is almost completely gone, and left in its tracks by the side of the road, chained to fences, light posts, parking meters is the winter’s road kill:



The cruelty and neglect of these poor bicycles breaks my heart. Just left out all of the harsh winter to be mauled by the snowplough. Now I know garages and places to keep bikes safe are few and far between, but really! Almost everyone has a balcony, but it up there where it at least won’t be destroyed by the snowplough, you could even put a tarp over it to keep it from rusting. Or even better, incorporate it as a piece of décor or artwork in your living room for the winter!
I’m calling for a new campaign, a new movement here people:
STOP CRUELY AGAINST BIKES!

Namur Metro: a good deal of fun (Part III)



"and i'll have the tali plate with..."
"chickpeas, no bread and no cheese" mrs. pushap interrupts.

it's official, i'm a regular, and so proud mrs. pushap knows my order (and my food allergies) by heart! i know this happens all the time in the movies at those home-town restaurants. But it happened to me in montreal! i'm not gonna lie, i feel pretty damn special. especially considering that pushap's is probably the greatest indian restaurant on the planet.

Pushap is the gem of the Namur metro neighborhood. its worth the trip all by itself, sans shopping. to get there, turn right out of the metro on jean-tallon, walk to the first set of lights and turn right and its at the next intersection.
here's why i love pushaps so so much:
- the food is always amazing, just the right amount of spice. and its 100% vegetarian
- their pakora and samosas with sweat and spicy dipping sauseare to die for as an appetizer. take a few to go when you leave for your lunch the next day. below are pakora, they are chickpea dumplings with onion, cilantro and spice.

- it's dirty cheap. you get a huge tali (mixed plate that includes chickpeas or lentil dal, 2 vegetable dishes, rice, chipati, and salad) plus a chai tea and dessert for $6!!! incroyable mes amis!

- they have deliciously strange, techno-colored desserts

- the service is quick and so friendly. they are so sweet!

- the decor is fabulous
- its always busy, but you can still almost always get a table within minutes.

- every friend i've brought their loves it, you'll always have good company