Ikea Goodness and Rob Ford Rant

Here are two beautiful things I recently bought from Ikea...

A retro speckled pale pink pot cover for $2.99...
And this Swedish horse cake pan that comes with a mini cake pan. Cost: $9.99. We already went ahead and made a horse strawberry shortcake with it. I've also traced the tin onto paper so my class can write horse poems onto the shape.

On a heavier note, I just had to say that I'm depressed with living in Mayor Rob Ford's Toronto. It's not my Toronto. I was born here and I've lived here all my life. I'm a citizen, not a customer in need of service. I pay taxes, but I think of myself as a mother, wife, teacher, friend, sister and daughter - not a tax payer. I was raised to be polite and friendly to people - not giving strangers the finger or being rowdy and obnoxious at sports games - two things Ford has been caught doing. The Toronto I love values the democratic process and accepts defeat graciously: two things Ford seems to be incapable of doing. The federal government of Canada is equally shifty and big brother-like. I've started looking at property in New Zealand with a little dreamy voice that says, "Maybe one day." I'll always love Toronto, but it's not the Toronto that Ford is trying to create.

Rob Ford

Here's a song for those ready for a new mayor.

FP's Crocodile Tears for Whitney

First off, I must admit that I've never been a fan of Whitney Houston. I also must admit that Fashion Police is one of my guilty pleasures. Why then have I been having conspiracy theory moments connecting FP's recent Whitney dis and the diva's sudden demise?

Alright, I'm not saying Joan Rivers killed her, but on the Feb. 10th episode the feisty and usually funny fashion police armchair critics savaged Whitney's wardrobe and I mean SAVAGED. I tried to find the clip on YouTube, but the episode is mysteriously unavailable. I have this image in my mind of Whitney blacking out in her hotel suite Friday evening. She comes to and puts E! on just when they're ripping into her outfit. She slides deeper into despair. Alright, I'm sure there's a lot more to it than this - but you've got to admit, the timing was terrible. I'm surprised nobody's talking about it.

What's worse was FP's maudlin tribute to Whitney Houston tacked onto the very end of their Grammy special yesterday. It was pretty nauseating. I guess my point is that if critics are going to prey on someone who could be on death's door, don't go delivering eulogies when they die. It's only funny until the coroner arrives.

Here's an older clip with a Whitney dis.

Harvest Gold

After all my bellyaching about the state of thrifting in Toronto, look what washed ashore at Value Village today...

Autumn Harvest - a pattern I love, but have very little of. I'm loath to reveal what I paid for it. Wait for it - $12.99! I'm a desperate woman.
Hammer time! I bought this delightfully weathered meat tenderizer for $2.99. Ken does not understand why anyone would ever buy a cut of meat that was so tough you need to pound it with a mallet. I just like the way it looks. Pickers, name your price.
Does anyone out there watch Pitchin' In? We LOVE it. I think Lynn Crawford is funny, down to earth and a brilliant chef. She's not like the snooty ones that hog all the air time on the Food Network. The idea behind the show is that she visits farms, orchards, mushroom fields, and fishing boats and learns what's involved in growing and harvesting by doing the grunt work. She always cooks an amazing feast at the end for the people. I've already made several recipes from this beautiful cookbook. Go buy it. I can't wait to dine in her restaurant one day.
Look what I noticed in the book - Pyrex being used for calamari stuffing mixture!

Here's my other recent obsession: the English band Bat For Lashes. It's dreamy, experimental synthy pop par excellence. I've got both albums on my iPod now. There's an interesting documentary on the singer Natasha Khan on YouTube. I'll include the first part. If you're interested, you should be able to keep clicking on the other parts when you get to the end.

The Winter of my Thrifting Discontent

The pickings continue to be slim at the thrift stores later. I'm not even terribly picky these days. I did find this swell old How and Why Wonder Book of Wild Flowers. As with all the How and Why Wonder Books, I love the hand-rendered artwork, glorious colours, and the .50 price printed on the cover.
This book once belonged to Robert McGurrin of Lyn, Ontario in 1963. I wonder if he's still alive and if so, what he's up to. I get a little sentimental when I come across books with people's names or inscriptions in them.
How could you not love this? Tomorrow, I'm thrifting for gym shorts for Duncan. Maybe the fact that I'm not specifically thrifting for vintage gold will actually work in my favour. Oh, who am I kidding. I'm always thrifting for vintage gold.