Scallops

I've had scallops before, this is not a first for me.  I love them and sometimes even crave them out of nowhere. I've had incredibly life-altering moments tasting the scrumptious juicy-melt-in-your-mouth delicious treats. But, today for the first time I attempted to cook them myself, on my own stove in my own kitchen. I used only small scallops, but the recipe   I used called for bigger more tasty ones. I used an amazing recipe out of one of Jamie Oliver's Cook books. Seriously, any recipe you chose from him will be to-die-for. He is amazing, and comes up with the most insane combinations of food that tickle your taste buds in ways you never thought possible. I made pan seared scallops with crispy bacon and sage with green lentils over Greens. Trust me, it tastes far better than the photo reveals. It was an amazing warm salad, when all was said and done. I am no chef (I leave that up to Matt) but I can follow a recipe very well!


Here is a close-up photo of the finished product. This photo really doesn't give it justice for the flavours that came out of it. If only photos could release smells. The rosemary and lemon were the most distinct smells/tastes and complimented the scallops and lentils extremely well. I would recommend anyone try this recipe, or any other Jamie Oliver recipes. You won't be dissapointed. Matt and I have tried many, and have like all of them! Click here for a copy of his recipe online!

Here are some random bits of info I learned from my experience/research today:

1. Health magazine has selected lentils as
one of the five healthiest foods
2. Lemon poured in to the pan with scallops creates a beautiful caramel coating while frying them, and stops them from burning.
3. In several tribal areas of Inner Mongolia, a salve made from lentils, coriander, and cumin is used as a folk remedy for infertility
4. One legend of the "Way of St. James" holds, that the route was seen as a sort of fertility pilgrimage, undertaken when a young couple desired to bear offspring. The scallop shell is believed to have originally been carried therefore by pagans as a symbol of fertility

That's all for now, folks!

Movie Rental Kiosk

Who needs Blockbuster, or Rogers anymore! You can rent a DVD from a machine at Safeway. Today was the first time I've actually rented a movie from a machine. This isn't a new invention by any means, and I've seen them all over the place, but always thought it was kind of weird. The whole fun of renting a movie, is wandering aimlessly around the store, deciding what best movie to rent. The options are countless and sometimes it even means you rent two movies, because you can't decide. MOVIE NIGHT! Go here to check out the website of this particular company I rented from.

The New Way

The latest way to rent movies is all inside a five-foot, 350 pound machine. Gone are the separate trips to those old video stores, where memberships, credit checks and patience are required.

Sixty Seconds is all it Takes

Cutting edge technology gives our customers fast access to up to 100 different new release movie titles at any given time, sixty seconds is all it takes.

Go Home and Enjoy

It's easy to use too. Just pick a movie by touching the screen, swipe a credit or debit card and within seconds your DVD is in your hands and ready for you to go home and enjoy.

I rented two movies for UNDER the price of a single DVD you'd rent at Rogers. That's 2 for 1, and then some! It's a sweet deal for these reasons:
1. You don't have to make small talk with an employee

2. Your movie selection is private (unless someone is peeking over your shoulder creepily)

3. It's $1.79 + tax, which is ridiculously cheap. You don't pay for the employees salary.

4. It feels like you're cheating and getting something for free.

5. You can do grocery shopping and movie rental in one stop. 

VOILA! Great first experience today. Go to the website to check out where there is a kiosk closest to you, and save a few bucks! Over the course of a year you could save some serious dough. (I sound like an advertiser!)


I WONDER WHAT THE FINE PRINT SAYS??  HMmmm....

Pound for Pound Challenge

I have been watching "The Biggest Loser" show on tv for years now, and find it extremely inspiring. If you haven't watched it before, you should! Especially if you struggle with your weight and are in need of motivation. Watching these extremely obese people on a treadmill reminds you if they can do it, so can you. The stories of the people on the show can be heartbreaking, and to watch them go from 400 pounds to 180 pounds is absolutely amazing! I've cried on a number of occasions; maybe I'm a sappy person and cry easily, but I love it. Even if you aren't overweight, but you don't find exercise as part of your daily routine, this show might help you realize how important it is. It's important to take care of yourself and make healthy choices.

On the show, they talk about the Pound for Pound Challenge. For every pound you pledge to lose through June 30, 2010, the Pound For Pound Challenge will donate 14¢ to Feeding America — enough to deliver one pound of groceries to a local food bank. I chose a Food Bank in New York City. (since it's an American show) I joined in the P for P challenge for the first time today, and pledged to lose 10 pounds by end of June. This works out to just under 1 lb a week.

I can do this, and so can you! Join the Challenge today and start living a healthier lifestyle!

Aging Wine

Three years ago, Matt and I travelled to Europe for his good friend, Marco's wedding. We went to the Netherlands, Sweden, France, and Norway. It's crazy to think it's been that long now since we were there. Wow. While in Paris, France we picked up a few bottles of random wine. We are no connoisseurs by any means, but all the wine in Paris was dirt cheap. Cheaper than you can imagine, 3 or 4 dollars a bottle. We drank a lot of wine while we were there, and even brought some wine home with us.

Today, we opened one of the bottles of wine we brought home 3 years ago. It was a 2005 bottle of Sauvignon Blanc.  It wasn't a special occasion, it was just a let's-try-this-wine-before-it-goes-bad kind of moment! It was incredibly good, and sweet and  nothing like I've ever tasted before, for a Sauvignon Blanc. It was almost as sweet as a desert wine, and I think this is because it sat for so long?!  This is the first time I've ever saved a bottle of wine for this long. I was reading about aging wine, and came across an article that states you shouldn't really age some wines. Most wines should be drank within a few years. Go here to read the entire article : click here - Here's a little bit of the article.

(photo from wikipedia-- aging wine in a cellar) 


"It is a misconception that you must age wine. The fact is, throughout the world, most wine is drunk "young" (that is relatively soon after it is produced, perhaps 12 to 18 months), even wines that are "better" if aged. While some wines will "mature" and become better over time, others will not and should be drunk immediately, or within a few years. Eventually all wine will "go over the hill," so even the wines meant to be kept for many, many years should be drunk before its too late. "

Master of Wine, Jancis Robinson, notes that only around the top 10% of all red wine and top 5% of all white wines can improve significantly enough with age to make drinking more enjoyable at 5 years of age than at 1 year of age. Additionally, Robinson estimates, only the top 1% of all wine has the ability to improve significantly after more than a decade. It is her belief that more wine is consumed too old, rather than too young, and that the great majority of wines start to lose appeal and fruitiness after 6 months in the bottle. (wikipedia)

So, there ya go! Ageing wine isn't always the best way to go. If you search "Aging Wine" in Wikipedia, it will give you a list of wines that are good to age, and for how long.  I like the idea of saving wine, and having it years down the road. It's like a time-capsule. It's a good way to bring back memories you shared with someone years ago.

Bottoms up!

Lose It! App for iPhone

Today, I've decided I need to kick my butt into gear and lose some much needed weight. I am getting married in just under a year, so I want to look my best! It's funny that this is my motivation. Why couldn't I do this before? Why does it have to come to this?  Why does a wedding make you start thinking about it, more than ever? It's weird. Regardless of my reasons, I am going to start watching my calorie intake and exercising with a more definite schedule. I am not good at depriving myself of food so diets never work; I tend to want the food even more if I do this. Lately, I've really been craving chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, and I've been thinking every minute of the day about this ice cream! Perhaps I will do a hard workout tomorrow, in order to have some! I will not completely deprive myself of the foods I love, or I will be unsuccessful.

Since I have my iPhone back, (YAAAYY!) I signed up for this App called "Lose it!" . I have been in Weight Watchers before, where you have to write everything down, but it can be quite difficult if you don't have your booklet with you. With this app, you can enter food and exercise easily using a searchable database, right on your phone! You can quickly re-enter foods and meals you’ve had during the day, and you can set up reminders so you don't forget. You can setup motivators to help keep you on track and use detailed online reports to track your progress.



It's very easy to use, and even keeps track of your daily nutritional intake like fat, sodium, protein, etc. The surprising thing about doing something like this, is seeing how easily calories can add up. In one sitting yesterday, I ate almost 800 calories. (Grilled meat and cheese sandwich with tomato soup) It's shocking, but it makes you realize how easy it is to gain weight. But it also makes you realize how easy it would be to lose it just with a little bit of effort. I set up an email service to send me a message at the end of the week, with my weekly caloric and nutritional results. All of this is FREE, which makes it even better.

These were my results for my first day. I went over my recommended calorie intake, but not by much. This is going to be harder than I thought. I was doing fine up until I went over to my sisters place and a bowl was filled with these delicious chips.  Chips are VERY hard for me to stay away from. They are soooo good. I stared at them for about 15 minutes, and depriving myself really made me want them even more. I grabbed a few very large handfuls and they were yummy. I think as long as I'm aware of my choices, and realize that "you are what you eat" I will lose the weight. I just need to be focused but not beat myself up over treats once in awhile.  I have a goal of losing 1/2 lb - 1lb a week, and 20 lbs total.  I can do this. I know I can. Even if people tell me I don't need to lose weight, I am being realistic and honest with myself and I know I do.

Wish me luck! :)

iPhone withdrawal

I've gone a whole day without my iPhone. (no, this wasn't done on purpose) I can't find it. And, no this isn't the first time I've lost my phone, but I didn't have a cool phone before so it wasn't as big of deal. This is the first time I've been without my iPhone for almost 24 hours. My iPhone is amazing and I really feel like I've lost part of my soul. This is no joke. Really. Seriously. Not even close. I would kill for it. (haha..ok, maybe that's going too far) I am lost without it. Where will I play ridiculously, time consuming pointless games? How will I find my way on the street without my Google Maps? How will I google someone in the middle of a liquor store without my iPhone? How will I go on IMDB to see if a movie has good reviews? How will I survive without texting for more than one day? How will I live without my Calender and schedule? How will I check my email at work, since we are too poor of a company to afford internet? How will I check my facebook 12893789342748923 times a day? How will I video tape random happenings on the street? How will I survive? ..... Will I survive, is the question! Yes, I'm addicted to it. I will fully admit this, and perhaps I should even go to a Help Meeting about it....hahahah.

The battery has now died, which makes it even more impossible to locate it. Apple should come out with an app to turn your phone on from your computer, and use some kind of alternate secondary battery for times like this.

The commercials say, there is an APP for just about anything?! This should be part of that category. How-to-find-my-phone-when-battery-dies app. COME ON APPLE, GET IT TOGETHER!!!

I will find it because I still feel its presence. It hasn't fully left this world yet. We are connected forever ear to speaker. This will never change. I love you, dear iPhone. I'm coming for you.

Constructive Criticism

Today, I received my first negative constructive criticism from a teacher about my Photography. It was the first real feedback that wasn't sugar coated ; the beginner classes that I've taken didn't help me as the teachers didn't want to scare people away.  This is the fifth class I've taken at Langara College for the Photography Program and it was hard to hear something negative as I am not used to it. I've always received good marks, always heard good things from everyone I know, and always heard only exceptional comments from teachers about my work. At first I saw this criticism as a sad, depressing thing, and was quite bothered by it. It's not easy to take criticism about something very personal to you; something you put your heart and soul in to.

The more I think about it, the more I am thrilled, though.

This means that I am finally at the level in school (after a year of thinking I wasn't going to learn anything or get any better) where I will start learning and improving. The only way for this to happen is to have teachers give me constructive criticism! This is a huge step for me. I don't know if anyone truly knows what I'm talking about here, but I'm happy about it.

Cheers to learning something new, and growing from it! Here's some of the photos I took for my most recent photo portrait session I did with a friend of mine; the photo session I got critiqued on in my class today: Enjoy! I am still proud of them, even though my teacher had much to say about them! He did ask if my subject was a model though, so Renee you should look in to this :)

(Check out Little Wish Photography for more of my work~)