Buy Canadian...I am on a rant !

I got some email that had an anecdote in it about a woman buy Canadian light bulbs. Maybe if we go along with her, and buy Canadian as much as we can, perhaps we can help bolster our own economy. Here is the text of her message.

 A physics teacher in high school, once told the students that while one grasshopper on the railroad tracks wouldn't slow a train very much, a billion of them would. With that thought in mind, read the following, obviously written by a good Canadian.
Good idea . . . one light bulb at a time . . . .

Check this out. I can verify this because I was in Lowe's the other day for some reason and just for the heck of it I was looking at the hose attachments. They were all made in China. The next day I was in Home Hardware and just for the heck of it I checked the hose attachments there. They were made in Canada. Start looking.

In our current economic situation, every little thing we buy or do affects someone else - even their job. So, after reading this email, I think this lady is on the right track. Let's get behind her!

My grandson likes Hershey's candy.. I noticed, though, that it is marked made in Mexico now. I do not buy it any more. My favorite toothpaste Colgate is made in Mexico now. I have switched to Crest… You have to read the labels on everything.

This past weekend I was at Wal-mart. I needed 60W light bulbs. I was in the light bulb aisle, and right next to the GE brand I normally buy was an off brand labeled, "Everyday Value. " I picked up both types of bulbs and compared the stats - they were the same except for the price. The GE bulbs were more money than the Everyday Value brand but the thing that surprised me the most was the fact that GE was made in MEXICO and the Everyday Value brand was made in - get ready for this -in Canada in a company in Ontario.

So throw out the myth that you can not find products you use every day that are made right here.

My challenge to you is to start reading the labels when you shop for everyday things and see what you can find that is made in Canada - the job you save may be your own or your neighbors!

If you accept the challenge, pass this on to others in your address book so we can all start buying Canadian, one light bulb at a time! Stop buying from overseas companies!

(We should have awakened a decade ago . . . . .. .)

Let's get with the program . . . . Help our fellow Canadians keep their jobs and create more jobs here in Canada.





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Dedicated to all those BC farmers with the great gardens !

OK...help, help, help! Time to do the proper eating thing again...some call it dieting. I won't. I want to call eat "proper eating" which for me, means moderate wine drinking. Wine is my downfall! I love it, as much, if not more than any food. Unfortunately, it has a few bad effects on me: slows my metabolism, the sugar imbedes the breakdown of foods, and stimulates my hunger. So what has all this to do with the photo and my dedication opening line?
First, the photo is ROASTED TOMATOES with olive oil, garlic, onions, oregano, dried basil, S&P, roasted in a 350F oven for 1 hr. Eat it as is, as a veggie. Whip it up in a blender with cream and reheat for the best homemade cream of tomato soup you ever had. Dieters, mix it with cottage cheese, warm in a microwave for about 20 secs, delicious! And for you pasta lovers, make whatever pasta you like, spoon in as much of these roasted tomatoes as you desire, and you will have a pasta dish to knock your socks off.
Now, as to you BC home gardeners. I envy you your moderate clime. Yes, I know it rains a lot but when you get the sun, wow, do you ever have great temperatures for growing, growing veggies, fruits, produce; The Okinagan Valley, Salt Spring Island, even Sayward at the northern end of Vancouver Island. I saw some of the best gardens by far in these places and the farmers, oh so good. Blanching their beans, their peas and freezing this wonderful harvest for those long, wet Vancouver winter nights.
In any case readers, cheer me on with this renewed dedication to eating properly...my blog will go in that direction for a while and I will post my weight drops week by week. Hopefully, with your written support I may have some real LASTING success. I am down between 6-8 lbs already after just two weeks. I will keep you posted. Weekends are my downfall and this is Thursday. Danger ! Danger ! Danger !
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Food is a passion...but it may be time to select another passion instead !

All my life, food has been a passion for me, a hobby, an interest, a pleasure, nearly an obsession. But it is time to select a new passion or else, to modify this one somehow. Since I am so passionate about food, I think I will choose to modify things. I will write about food, write out some of my favourite or best recipes and not focus on the eating of it all. Sampling yes, tasting, not 'hoovering' it all down.

So stay tuned, you may find some of my stuff entertaining, interesting and informative. Write me your feedback, your comments and if you try any of my recipes, give me your critiques. But remember, if you criticize, I want to know what you did to improve it and why you didnt like what I gave you. My recipes arent always perfect but for the most part, my family and friends have found them quite tasty and enjoyable. And I would like to add, simple to prepare.

My dad was a professional chef. He would not teach me cooking as he said it was a profession which wreaked havoc on family life, on social life. He was right. I rode through western Canada this year and interviewed 15 of the best chefs out there. About a third of them were divorced or separated. I respected their privacy and never dug into the reasons for this, but my dad's word rang in my ears and gave me ideas. Still, the apple does not fall from the tree and so I always dream of being a good chef. A good chef is organized, careful and systematic. Now there are some attributes which I need to add to my persona, along with patience. I cant bake...and it is precisely because of my personality. To be a good pastry chef, you must be patient, precise and pragmatic...no guessing, no estimating, no approximations. Measure, weigh, and work with diligence. Maybe some day I will. After meeting an Executive Chef in Whistler, BC, I want to try baking bread. After tasting the homemade baked stuff made by a home chef in northern Vancouver Island, I am envious as to how they have such great skills and can produce their own breads, pies, and cakes. I pride myself in cooking and cant do it...but I keep promising myself, I will.

So stay tuned, come back every now and then and I will have tips, advice, suggestions, cautions and more, all related to food and cooking. I am certain, at the very least you will be entertained.

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