Poutine Chronicles: Florida Edition

Richard and I just got back from a week in Florida. Before leaving I googled "Poutine in South Florida" and came up with the Dairy Belle in Dania Beach, just south of Ft. Lauderdale. (Note: It's closed on Mondays so don't be disappointed like we were. All we could do was take photos of the signs!)


They have tons of stuff from back home. Poutine as well as steamed hot dogs. Under the poutine listings they have "Galvaude" which I later found out was poutine with chicken and peas.


For the uninitiated, they explain exactly what poutine is in all it's yummy goodness. (Click to enlarge.)


So we headed back to the Dairy Belle the next night. We just couldn't pass this one up. Isn't this place cute?


Richard and I split a large poutine and here it is.


Mid-November at 7 p.m. and eating poutine outside in 83F temperature. Heaven or what?
Rating: 5 curds out of a possible 5. How could I give it anything less?

Soup Art

The last of the root veggies from the garden got made into two kinds of soup: carrot soup and leek and potato soup. Then I decided to do a kind of tribute to Kenneth Noland. Who knew art could taste so good?

Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

How long are you allowed to sit in it, do you suppose?


This just struck me as funny. The ultimate in fusion food?


This seemed odd too although I'm sure it's not what they meant.

Punch Card Art

A few years ago I participated in an art show entitled "Do Not Fold, Bend, Spindle or Mutilate: Computer Punch Card Art." The organizers at the Visual Arts Center at the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science mailed out punch cards and asked folks to fold, bend or mutilate the cards in any way they chose and return them. This is what I sent in.

Pink & Yellow Roses Cake

This marble cake with chocolate frosting was for my friend Barb's daughter Bridget. I experimented with two-toned roses and I like how they turn from pink to yellow. Fun.

Poutine With a Side of Fish

Warning: This post should be called "Grease Overload!"
While in Cornwall meeting Jen and her friend Denise (who was visiting from Barrie, Ontario), we headed to Ye Old Fish and Chip Shop in Cornwall. Denise ordered onion rings for the table.


Jen decided that the poutine her son had on their last visit was so darn good, that she'd order it as a side to her fish.


Looks good, eh?


There was more than one fork in that poutine. I guess you can have your fish and poutine too. Who'd have thunk it?

October Woods

I did this colour pencil drawing and gave it to my sister Marcia for her October 12th birthday. The leaves have nearly all fallen around here so it's nice to remember what those bright, yellow maple trees looked like.

Nests Revealed

Now that the leaves are falling, nests are revealing themselves all over the place. This one is very close to my front door. I actually discovered it the day before the little birds fledged. It was a blue jay nest and I had never seen jay babies before. They looked like miniature blue jays with very short tails.


This robin's nest was in my crab apple tree.


I'm not sure what kind of birds lived in this nest. I'm guessing a Kinglet, as they seem to prefer spruce to nest in. This little tree is my millennium tree (planted in 2000) and it's about 5 feet tall now. I was marvelling at how large it was getting when I noticed this little nest, well hidden in the upper boughs.

Big Things: Spider

This gargantuan bronze spider, called Maman by Louise Bourgeois, weighs 8,165 kg (18,000 lbs) and carries a sac of twenty white marble eggs under her belly. It resides outside the front door of the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.

Faux Poutine Cake

Since Richard and I have spent a better part of our summer recording our Poutine Chronicles, I figured I'd make a faux poutine cake for Richard's birthday.


The "french fries" are Sara Lee pound cake cut into fry shapes and toasted. The "cheese curds" are made out of white chocolate and the "gravy" is dulce de leche.


The cake under all that was chocolate with white icing.


I think the birthday boy enjoyed it!

Hallowe'en ATC Trade

Our monthly artist trading card swap fell on Hallowe'en this year. I traded a set I drew in a tiny sketch pad at the Bronze, Blues and Brews Festival a few years back when I was in Joseph, Oregon. I sketched a fabulous bronze statue of a horse.


Meanwhile other clever folks were more timely. Suzanne commented on the current H1N1 crisis and gave a jack-o-lantern a mask. All the tiny pumpkins on her ATCs had tiny masks as well. Now that's, as she said, "Scary!"


The cards were laid out on a long, wooden table so we could walk around and see the offerings.


Then the frenzy of the trade began.


The meet ended with themed cookies brought by Evlyn. It was a great trade. See ya again next month.

And the Winner Is...

I wrote all the names of people who entered the book give-away and put them into Richard's Chicago Blackhawks cap. And the winner is...


...Elisabeth! I'll send you the book. Congratulations!

Halloween Tree?

Driving in Alexandria yesterday, I spotted this tree and it made me stop in my tracks. A Halloween tree or a Christmas tree? I guess it's a playful way to bring in the season -- whichever one that might be. Boo!

A Day at the National Gallery

Yesterday, a few gals and I headed up to Ottawa to the National Gallery of Canada. We wanted to see the Miller Brittain exhibit...


...and the First Nations artist Daphne Odjig.


The architecture is so much fun we stopped to take photos too.


We had lunch in the cafeteria. I had beef and barley soup and a tuna sandwich...


...while others in the group were more classy and had smoked salmon.


And just before we got in the car to call it a day, we stopped at the gift shop for a look-see. Well, more that a look-see I think!