Some of the most fun moments in life can happen unexpectedly. The past Saturday was an example of such a day, one filled with a random assortment of wonderful activities.
Being an early bird, I, not uncharacteristically, woke up around 7:30 with massive hunger pains! Upon a quick scan of my fridge, I decided to make a quiche from what remained of my week-old produce collection. A red onion, a green pepper, a bunch of limpy asparagus, two roma tomatoes, and half a container of freshly grated parmesan cheese. As I started chopping the veggies, I thought what a pity that there was going to be so much leftovers. Why not call up some friends to come over for breakfast?
About an hour after being rudely awakened, my friends Greg and Jessica arrive, both in cheery spirits, but understandably, still just a bit groggy. Between bites of quiche and sips of tea, we had a lovely conversation that drifted between a number of lovely, lighthearted breakfast topics. Ha! Not really. We mostly chatted about the G8/G20 protests actually. For instance, the heavy-handed actions by the authority towards protestors; and how the media made it sound like the police arrested anyone that moved. Violent protestors, peaceful protestors, protestors that looked like protestors, protestors that were under disguise as tourists and joggers, along with any actual tourists and joggers. We theorized about the circumstances under which we would ever consider joining a protest. Greg, ever the diplomat, acknowledged his appreciation of living in a country that allows for free speech and public expressions of dissent, but he didn’t know if he’d ever partake in a protest. While Jessica shared her thoughts and rationale over joining a recent protest that was held in response to Canada’s refusal to sign the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. As for me, I have yet to find myself so passionate or personally vested in a cause to have joined in a protest over it. But never say never.
Following the to-protest-or-not-to-protest discussion, Greg spotted my neglected guitar, which happened to be propped up against my neglected piano.
"May I?” He asked.
“Sure.” I replied, and the next thing I know Greg is breaking out his mad guitar skills. In the moments that followed, we found ourselves amidst an impromptu sing-along where Greg would start playing one of the many songs that he knew off the top of his head (including "Firefly"-Owl City, "I will follow you into the dark"-Death Cab), and we'd find the lyrics off the web and sing along. It comforts me to know that if none of our day jobs pan out, maybe we can still make a living as a cover band or something.
After the mid-morning living room concert, we moseyed on over (drove) to the downtown farmers' market. Edmonton being the big small town it is, we bumped into several familiar faces. Well... it was mostly Jessica, who was bumping into family and friends left and right - literally. I bumped into one friend; and Greg, none. His buddies are apparently too cool for the market.
Lunch at the market included fresh raspberries, a rather disappointing chicken burrito that was kinda dry, flavorless and skimpy on veggies, and 1/2 of a scrumptious Jalapeno Cheddar Fat Frank that I mooched off of the one friend that I had bumped into (Thanks Tyler).
Following the market, we began perusing the various art and design exhibits on display at a number of different downtown venues, as a part of the Works - an annual, month-long Arts and Design Festival. One of the images still fresh on my mind include a very well-painted piece displaying a bright canola field set before an ominous darken sky that warns of an imminent early evening storm (wish I had the picture to show you). This kind of Ode-to-the-Prairies painting would certainly resonant with many of us that have driven on Alberta's highways during pre-storm summer evenings, and have personally witnessed the starkly contrasting colors between the land and sky, and thought it to be a bit surreal.
After the mid-morning living room concert, we moseyed on over (drove) to the downtown farmers' market. Edmonton being the big small town it is, we bumped into several familiar faces. Well... it was mostly Jessica, who was bumping into family and friends left and right - literally. I bumped into one friend; and Greg, none. His buddies are apparently too cool for the market.
Lunch at the market included fresh raspberries, a rather disappointing chicken burrito that was kinda dry, flavorless and skimpy on veggies, and 1/2 of a scrumptious Jalapeno Cheddar Fat Frank that I mooched off of the one friend that I had bumped into (Thanks Tyler).
Following the market, we began perusing the various art and design exhibits on display at a number of different downtown venues, as a part of the Works - an annual, month-long Arts and Design Festival. One of the images still fresh on my mind include a very well-painted piece displaying a bright canola field set before an ominous darken sky that warns of an imminent early evening storm (wish I had the picture to show you). This kind of Ode-to-the-Prairies painting would certainly resonant with many of us that have driven on Alberta's highways during pre-storm summer evenings, and have personally witnessed the starkly contrasting colors between the land and sky, and thought it to be a bit surreal.
Another noteworthy exhibit was one done by the U of A Design students that featured furniture made of different types of bioresidues such as hemp or hay. The crop residues were pressed into particle boards similar to what is currently used for making furniture. However, instead of concealing the building material with tacky facades and finishes, typical of cheap furniture, the chairs and coffee table are displayed proudly au natural. Some of the furniture surfaces had cool mosaic patterns made by piecing together different types of bioresidue boards.
By 4 o’clock, nearly 7 hours since the beginning of this staycation, all of us complained of needing a nap. So we went home, each to their own, and had a nap.
A bit anticlimactic, no? But, that’s not the end…
Around 7 pm, Jessica and I (sadly, sans Greg) drove to the deep south (Ellerslie) for a Deep Frying Party, hosted by my engineering buddy, Wayne Poon and his rag tag team of deep fry-happy hooligans. When we got there, we met Wayne in the backyard, who greeted us dressed in full personal protective gear - flame retardant coveralls, steel toed boots, and safety glasses. Why, you ask? Well, I'm guessing to prevent oil stains on his designer jeans or to not get hurt if an 8 kg deep fried turkey were to accidentally get dropped on his foot. But the real reason for dressing up is probably just because he CAN.
Going there I was hoping for some good deep fried turkey, but the scope of the menu exceeded my expectations beyond measure. To start, we had deep fried mozza sticks, onions rings, yam fries and mushrooms. Followed by the main courses - turkey AND crab legs. Lastly, for dessert we further indulged in deep fried Oreos, Twinkies, and Mars bars. Just for the record, deep frying sugar, chocolate, and convenience store-bought cake, made of ingredients wholly derived from petroleum products is not too much for the palate - it tastes inexplicably amazing! The smooth execution of the deep frying activities was impressive and obviously the result of some good planning. For instance, they had pre-prepared different types of batters, soaked the turkey in brine and seasoning for a day beforehand, and had enough oil on hand to change the oil between the dinner and the dessert items so that our sweet treats wouldn’t taste like onions and turkey.
It was a rockin good party. Kudos to Wayne, Eric, Jon and the others for organizing!
And that was the awesome finale to our 1st ever Staycation. Here’s to hopefully many more :)
By 4 o’clock, nearly 7 hours since the beginning of this staycation, all of us complained of needing a nap. So we went home, each to their own, and had a nap.
A bit anticlimactic, no? But, that’s not the end…
Around 7 pm, Jessica and I (sadly, sans Greg) drove to the deep south (Ellerslie) for a Deep Frying Party, hosted by my engineering buddy, Wayne Poon and his rag tag team of deep fry-happy hooligans. When we got there, we met Wayne in the backyard, who greeted us dressed in full personal protective gear - flame retardant coveralls, steel toed boots, and safety glasses. Why, you ask? Well, I'm guessing to prevent oil stains on his designer jeans or to not get hurt if an 8 kg deep fried turkey were to accidentally get dropped on his foot. But the real reason for dressing up is probably just because he CAN.
Going there I was hoping for some good deep fried turkey, but the scope of the menu exceeded my expectations beyond measure. To start, we had deep fried mozza sticks, onions rings, yam fries and mushrooms. Followed by the main courses - turkey AND crab legs. Lastly, for dessert we further indulged in deep fried Oreos, Twinkies, and Mars bars. Just for the record, deep frying sugar, chocolate, and convenience store-bought cake, made of ingredients wholly derived from petroleum products is not too much for the palate - it tastes inexplicably amazing! The smooth execution of the deep frying activities was impressive and obviously the result of some good planning. For instance, they had pre-prepared different types of batters, soaked the turkey in brine and seasoning for a day beforehand, and had enough oil on hand to change the oil between the dinner and the dessert items so that our sweet treats wouldn’t taste like onions and turkey.
It was a rockin good party. Kudos to Wayne, Eric, Jon and the others for organizing!
And that was the awesome finale to our 1st ever Staycation. Here’s to hopefully many more :)
1 comment:
I like how you turned "limpy asparagus" into a breakfast-catalyst for enjoying the rest of the day with your friends. Good work!
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