A Few Quick Notes - 629

-Despite a light dusting of snow late yesterday afternoon/evening, the winter continues to be unseasonably warm.  Again today we're expecting temperatures close to five degrees above freezing and I'm not sure if it's even gone down to -20 at any point this month.  It's just bizarre.

-A few months ago I noticed that our oven didn't seem to be heating evenly.  Of course, because it did eventually heat up it took me a while to identify the problem.  That the element in the oven continued to operate as normal made the problem even more baffling.

Finally, after months of procrastination we finally called an appliance service company last week and arranged for a visit by a repairman.  After quickly describing the problem, the service technician got down to work and began disassembling our oven.

Before long panels were off and he was deep in the gut of the thing, where he found that the oven's second element - which was hidden in the side of the oven away from site - was shot.  Fortunately, he had a replacement element on hand and he was able to have the oven back in proper working order in less than an hour.

While we were more than satisfied with the quality of the service call, it seems like a bit of a design weakness to place a replaceable element in a location that requires the oven to be torn apart to reach.  That the first element lasted about fifteen years will hopefully mean that this won't be a service call we will need to make again.

-With our newly functioning oven we've both already completed baking projects.  Yesterday I made a loaf of bread and Jeannette made a small batch of coconut cookies.

-In addition to regular Sunday cleaning and errands, we'll likely have to make a trip to the grocery store later today.  Hurrah!

Cameron - 10
Neil - 0

A Few Quick Notes 609

-Today I walked outside and immediately wondered if I even needed a coat. Once I started the car I realized that it was still -16.5, but it was about 10 degrees warmer than the previous morning and certainly enough to feel the difference.

-Apparently today was budget day.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that CBC did push back, or at least appeared to, push back Olympics coverage to do some budget coverage.

-I think we may need to head to the grocery store tomorrow after work.

-Over the course of the past few weeks I've been trying to sell Jeannette on the effectiveness of Shirley Temple's performances in her many childhood movie appearances.  I think I finally convinced Jeannette that Shirley's movies are still entertaining.

So it definitely felt a little weird when this morning Jeannette emailed me to let me know that Shirley Temple had just died.  Definite bummer.

Cameron - 12
Neil - 0

A Few Quick Notes 605

-After temperatures just above zero, we've now dropped into the -20 zone.  As surprising as some of you might find it, I actually prefer this temperature because it's much drier and easier to content with while walking.

-I seems that between Friday night and Saturday morning we had a bit of a secret snowfall.  Because it was just a few centimetres and because it was almost -40 (with wind chill) I opted to leave it on the ground yesterday.  Of course, this means that at some point today I'll have to head out and deal with it.  Yum.

-In a rare roll reversal, this morning Jeannette suggested a trip to the grocery store and I suggested that such a trip wasn't necessary.  I wonder when this will happen again?

-After nine days off, I'll finally have to head back to work tomorrow.  Hopefully my sleep schedule hasn't been too contorted by this break.

-Thanks to our turkey-free lifestyle this holiday season hasn't been too bad for our diets.  Aside from an overconsumption of holiday breads, we've managed to eat pretty normally over the past few weeks.  I guess this means we won't need to make any sure-not-to-be-followed dieting resolutions for New Year's?

A Few Quick Notes 595

-Though it was -10 tonight both Jeannette and I were commenting the day's warmth.  Sure, we both still wore jackets when we went to the grocery store, but I'm not sure either of us zipped them up.

-So, it seems that maybe at least a little residential snow clearing occurs in Regina.

When I came home from work I noticed that a few inches of packed snow had been removed from the roads near our apartment. Of course, these streets still have a few inches of packed down snow on them, and in at least one case the dreaded ruts are already beginning to re-appear.

-As I returned home from work I reminded Jeannette that this morning she expressed an interest in a return visit to a local grocery store this evening.  Of course, we could both remember that Jeannette asked to go to the store but neither of us could remember why she wanted to go.  Throughout our visit, though to no avail, we both kept trying to recall the original reason for our trip.

Not surprisingly, just a little while after we returned home Jeannette remembered that she wanted a new pillow.  Woops.

I guess we'll be heading back tomorrow.

-Today Neil sent me a link about oxalate content in certain foods that lead me to additional material on the same topic.  The real bummer of the whole excursion out onto the fast lane of the information super highway was that I learned that just about everything seems to have kidney stone causing oxalates.

Well, at least I still have water with lemon, right?

Kidney stones are the worst.

-But at least the days are getting longer?

Doesn't ring true

Grocery stores are some of my favourite stores.  Not only are they great places to visit in your hometown, but they are really wonderful entry points to local culture while travelling.  Grocery stores provide a pretty unvarnished glimpse into what people are consuming and how much they are paying for it.

Given my appreciation of these stores it may not come as a surprise that while visiting such establishments I frequently try to get a sense of some of the prices.  I am particularly interested common foods, like flour and bread, that one can find in a pretty wide range of locales.

Anyway, the reason for this discussion of my love of grocery stores and grocery pricing is because I just read a Globe and Mail article about higher food prices that really didn't ring true to me.

To be a little more precise, aspects of the article didn't ring true to me.  It wasn't really the general thrust of the article with which I had a problem (I agree that food prices do seem to be heading up), but it was a particular sentence that bothered me.

Canadians have had years of access to cheaper food, and on average devoted far less of their household budgets to groceries than people in other countries.

While it may be true that food costs in Canada are lower than in some other countries, they aren't countries I have visited.  When in the two non-Canadian countries with which I am most familiar, the US and the UK, I am always struck by the lower food prices.  More expensive wheat, particularly given Canada's prominence as a wheat producer, always strikes me as a particularly noticeable trend here.

Furthermore, though I didn't follow all imported food prices closely at the time, I don't recall ever seeing a dramatic price drop in Canadian grocery prices when the dollar surged in value a few years ago (a trend which seems to parallel the continuing discrepancy in US/Canada book prices).  For instance, shouldn't oranges, a entirely imported product, have taken something like a 30% price dip to reflect our increasing purchasing power?

For some reason I keep get the sense that in Canada the consumer is frequently not reaping the benefits of changes in global market places (though had the Globe and Mail cited their source it is possible I could follow up and learn that my sense of things is off).

A Few Quick Notes 539

-While today is still a little cooler than I might have expected it to be in early June in the Annapolis Valley, it is fortunately brighter than it was yesterday. Not that the forecast means anything here, actually it seems to be worse than it was in Halifax or St. John's, but they are not even predicting any major improvements in the coming days. Bummer.

-Yesterday Jeannette and I made our way to a meat shop in Windsor with plans of buying some ground llama and some llama and wild boar sausage. While we weren't able to get the second of these two products (we had to settle for venison and wild boar sausage), we were able get some ground llama and also some ground beef. Maybe more importantly, we learned that the store we visited is really a full-service butcher shop (we thought it might just be a speciality meat shop). So not only will they cut your meats how you want them cut, they also sell quite a variety of meats, including lamb, goat, beef, pork, rabbit, bison, emu, llama, and poultry. While we were in line waiting to be served we both had the sense that their customers were coming in from all over the province to take advantage of the wide variety of products and services that this company provides.

-Many of our container garden plants finally seem to be sprouting and starting the early stages of their growth. Unfortunately, some number of the plants seem to have been struck with a spider-mite like pest (though I think it is something different and that they picked it up from the local environment). Anyway, I just hope that they aren't too negatively impacted by these pests, as that would really bum me out.

-I definitely feel as though I am in something of a post-comps work slump. Hopefully by this afternoon or this evening I will find a way to roust myself from this period of sloth and get back to work.

-Because of the developments relating to the NHL team in Winnipeg and the possible AHL team in St. John's I have been thinking about hockey and sports teams much more than I traditionally do. That being said, even though I have been thinking about hockey teams I have spent very little time actually thinking about hockey. That people are so interested in watching the game still baffles me. I just don't get what makes the game so exciting.

-Maybe instead of trying to fill up the internet I should either have some lunch or get down to work.

A Few Quick Notes 531

-We had the pleasure of having another beautiful day today. It seems that the first part of this week isn't supposed to be quite as nice as this weekend was.

-I am now 5 for 33 for this year's RUTRTW contest. Maybe not surprisingly, all of the 5 prizes have been been free coffees.

-This weekend I was again able to take advantage of the fact that our building has not yet increased the laundry prices as promised. I am quite happy that the promised price increase has not yet been implemented, though this impending doom of the price change is a little nerve-wracking.

-A few days ago it became clear that one of the two local grocery stores has stopped carrying pate. This seems a strange development as they had been carrying a number of varieties until a few weeks ago and because the other store is continuing to carry a number of varieties. What I can't figure out is why this change would have happened at this particular moment in time.

-A few days ago I saw a CBC story about a local sexual assault that had a pretty distrubing line.

The woman told police she recognized him as the same stranger who had touched her three times previously in similar incidents.

How is it that similar attacks have happened to the same woman three times?

-Gilles Duceppe seems to have requested a time change for the French language debate from Thursday to Wednesday because of a scheduling conflict - with a NHL hockey game.

Though I get the sense that at least a few of the other parties aren't opposed to such a change, I haven't heard if the change will actually be approved.

Update: Neil just informed me that the debate has in fact been changed and will now be taking place on Wednesday.

-Neil and I traded haircuts this afternoon.

A Few Quick Notes 497

-Though today started off in the -14 range, as time has passed the temperature has steadily risen. Though it is now -2 the temperature is predicated to reach a few degrees above freezing by later tonight. I have to agree with Environment Canada that this is "an abnormal temperature trend."

-Today I bought a few blood oranages (also known as moro oranges). I opted for the regular priced bulk oranges at $1.95 a pound instead of the on sale 2 pound bags at $4.49. I am not sure if I feel about about spotting the chance to save or bad for all the people who will be suckered into paying the higher price.

-I am currently studying and drinking some yerba mate with my new bombilla. The big problem with this set up seems to be that the ability of the metal bombilla to conduct heat makes drinking the beverage when warm a little unpleasant. Of course, if you like really hot metal tubes that squirt equally hot water into your mouth than this may be the set up for you.

-The Dalhousie libraries website is really unpleasant to use. It is so frustrating when it is clear that so much effort has been put into a project that takes one further away from the goal than they were when the started.

A Few Quick Notes 494

-To the best of my knowledge today was a pretty decent winter's day. While it was cool, though not too cool, I don't recall us having to deal with snow or other forms of precipitation.

-For the first time this year I had the pleasure of attending the class that I have been sitting in on for the past two years. As usual, this first class of the semester was something of an introduction.

-This evening I am having the pleasure of using a coin-operated washer and dryer. What fun apartment life is.

-Today seems to have been an active day in Newfoundland politics. My understanding is that a relatively unknown contender has come forward to challenge the interim leader of the PC party, Kathy Dunderdale, for the leadership of the party. Assuming that this contender's nomination papers are accepted Newfoundland could see itself with a new Premier as Dunderdale has promised to step down if challenged.

-As tomorrow is student discount day at our local grocery stores I may have to stop by one of the stores and pick up a few more citrus fruits so I can provide my reading public with a slightly better citrus update, as I am sure none of you were sated by the last waste-of-time post on the subject.

The Day of the Citrus

Yesterday I noticed that one of the local grocery stores was having a sale on a number of different non-standard varieties of citrus fruits. It didn't take me long to realize that I wanted to try a few of the varieties on sale. Shortly after buying the fruit I decided to give them all a try

Ugli Fruit - Living up to its name, this nasty looking fruit did taste a little better than it looked. That being said, this somewhat strong sour flavour made it not a new favourite.

Sunburst(?) Tangerine - Every few years I seem to be suckered into buying a few tangerines. This batch, like all of those in the past, was no exception to the rule: an incredible disappointment. For some reason tangerines are just never quite as flavourful or juicy as I expect them to be.

Pomelo - This isn't my first pomelo of the past few weeks so I wasn't particularly surprised with this particular citrus fruit. As usual, I quite enjoyed the flavour and texture of the fruit. That being said, I can see how it might be a bit sour for some people.

Blood Orange - I guess I must have had one of these in the past but I really don't remember when or under which circumstances this might have happened. Though this one had a little more flavour than I expected, it was also much better than I expected. If all oranges were this tasty I might actually eat them more regularly than once every few years.

Wow, that was much less informative than I hoped it would be. Sorry.

A Few Quick Notes 492

-Today, much to my surprise, was actually quite nice, if a little chilly.

-I am presently in the midst of making some focaccia-like bread. Instead of following a proper recipe I just added some olive oil and herbs to some rolled bread dough. While it may not be great, it should at least be edible.

-A few days ago John Cusack was asked what he thought was going to happen in 2012. He told them to Mayand their own business.

-Our collective salad kick is still ongoing. Yesterday I stopped by the grocery store and purchased carrots, celery, sliced cabbage, radishes, green onions, and red onions. Today I supplemented our today supplies with another 10 lbs of carrots.

Of course, I haven't just been buying supplies but also consuming salads. Twice today I had salads that contained six Canada's Food Guide servings of vegetables.

I suspect that if that if I am able to maintain this rate of consumption I will be burned out on salads by the end of end of the month.

-Though I have already put in a fair bit of work today, I should probably try to do some more reading before I call it a night.

A Few Quick Notes 488

-Amazingly, much of the evidence of yesterday's flash snowfall has vanished. Maybe even more surprising is the fact that today was actually quite a nice day, it even went so far as to be above freezing.

-Yesterday I purchased a package of red peppers from the grocery store only to find that they were some of the worst red peppers I have ever had. What is strange is that while they don't appear to be spoiled they are definitely note quite as crisp as they should be and they are certainly lacking the flavour I am accustomed to finding in most of my red peppers. Hopefully I will have better luck next time.

-On a related note, Jeannette and I took a trip to the local farmers' market only to make a single substantive purchase (a $1 turnip). Of course, to find this turnip we had to brave dense groups and elbow our way past the better part of Halifax's aging yuppy population.

-Our Ultimate game didn't go particularly poorly tonight though we were at least a few points behind for most of the game. In the end the result was less than surprising and ended with us getting the loss. One of the most enjoyable aspect of the game was running across a member of the opposing team who happened to be on my first Ultimate team in St. John's in 2005.

-I am starting to think about getting ready for Christmas, for better or worse this hasn't yet meant that I have actually done that much to get ready.

-Aside from our Ultimate game and trip to the market, I feel as though I spent most of my day marking. Fortunately I am now just about done for the night/day/term. Before it I know it I will be back to studying for my comps.

Peanut butter scam

A few days ago while walking through a local grocery store I noticed a sale display that contained a number of varieties of peanut butter. While smooth and chunky took up most of the space in the display I happened to notice that a few non-standard varieties were also available. One such variety, the unsweetened-unsalted type, seemed particularly appealing (mostly because it sounded healthier).

Because I imagined this new version of peanut butter to be healthier I decided to give it a shot (even though it looked a little browner and a little less smooth). Almost immediately I started to feel good about myself and attention that I was paying to my body.

Of course this feeling of achievement evaporated almost as soon as I returned home with my purchase. Neil, upon hearing about the product, was kind enough to suggest that I compare the nutritional information of the new product to another variety of peanut butter made by the same manufacturer. Sadly, contrary to what the label might indicate, there wasn't much difference in nutritional content between the two products.



The main difference seems to be that the version that claims to be unsalted does, in fact, have less sodium, though only about 70 mg less (hardly anything in the prepared food realm).

Now, instead of feeling good about myself, I feel ripped off and tricked. Furthermore, I now have a product that is no healthier than the one I already had but that I don't particularly need.

I have once again been screwed by falling for an appeal to my conscience.

A Few Quick Notes 485

-As of about an hour ago it has been snowing. So far their isn't even a centimeter but the grass across from my window is definitely tinged with white.

-Irony of ironies, after going on and on about my search for an unscented antiperspirant my newly acquired unscented antiperspirant's odor is making me feel ill. I almost feel as though I should take a shower to get this stuff off of me.

-The female owner of the two puppies that had been using the grass across from my window as a toilet now seems to be taking her dogs a little further afield to expel their waste. Over the past few days I have seen the small dogs and their owner walking up and down our street. Whenever I see the owner I wonder if she recognizes me as the guy watching her dogs play and use the toilet from his bedroom window.

-For a while Montifax routinely took positions for or against things (being opposed to the re-naming of Parc Avenue in Montreal being one of our prominent stands). For better or worse, this tradition seems to have fallen out of practice over the past several years.

It seems fitting that we re-introduce this feature to the blog with a position that Neil and I both whole-heartedly support.

The position we are taking is against Earl Grey tea, likely the grossest of the teas. This stuff is just foul. Neither of us know why people drink it.

-I attended my department's Christmas party on Thursday evening. Unlike the version of the party I attended 2 years ago, in this instance students sat at tables with professors and vice-versa. All in all, it was a very pleasant event (a fact that was aided by the respect that was paid to my dietary limitations by the organizer).

-I believe it was yesterday when I purchased a 10 kilogram bag of flour for $5.35. What a price.

Does "scent free" mean fewer scents?

Over the course of the past few years my sense has been that the number of public buildings that claim to be "scent free" seems to be on the rise. Of course, whether or not these buildings are actually scent free is another matter.

Assuming my intuition is correct, and we are seeing an increase in "scent free" public spaces, shouldn't it follow that we would see an increase in the number of unscented personal hygiene products for people to wear in these odorless locales?

Much to my surprise, such an increase does not seem to have taken place. Scented products are still readily available. Actually, I am starting to think that scented products may comprise a larger portion of some personal hygiene product categories than has historically been the case.

In particular, I think we may be seeing a decline in the number of unscented antiperspirant that are easily accessible. When I went shopping for such a product in my local grocery store a few days ago I found only two products that matched my criteria (both of which were made by the same expensive, but effective, brand). Historically when searching for such products I have always had a few more options. Furthermore, some of the brands that I know that I have used in the past did have unscented options available. Given the limited selection my recent shopping experience was much less pleasant than I expected it to be.

Body wash, seemingly a newly popular replacement for soup, seems to be a type of product that almost never comes in a scent-free format (at least as far as I can tell). And as body wash seems to be replacing shower soaps, many of which were scent free, the popularity onslaught (at least if shelf-space in stores is an indicator of popularity) of this product may actually be increasing the number of people using scented products on a daily basis.

Of course, the newfound, or increasing, interest in using scented deodorants/antiperspirants and body washes may just be a way getting around the "scent free" rule if this rule is interpreted to mean only that perfumes and colognes are prohibited. Whatever the case may be, people like myself, who try to use unscented products, are likely having a harder time finding such products and grumbling about what we hope isn't a "new normal."

A Few Quick Notes 483

-Today, like yesterday, has been quite moist. Like yesterday, we have had something that seems to be a cross between rain and fog.

-I had the pleasure of taking a few trips to the grocery store today. Not surprisingly, I ended up buying more than I likely should have. The two on sale twelve packs of diet cola were two purchases that I really, likely, should have avoided.

-A few days ago I noticed that our neighbourhood pizza shop was scheduled to close before the end of November. Yesterday, or maybe today, I noticed that a new pizza place will be moving into the same location in the very near future. I am curious if the new pizza shack will last longer than the few months that the last one lasted.

-After a slight break, I finally got back to working on transcriptions today. I was amazed to discover how rusty I had become. Apparently practicing every day for a few weeks in a row actually made a difference and improved my typing skills and keyboard familiarity.

A Few Quick Notes 474

-After a several day period of clear skies it seems that Halifax is now, once again, sheathed in clouds. The prediction is that this cloud cover will soon lead to rain, which would be a less than well-received turn of events.

-This morning I made an early trip to the grocery store so that I would be able to take advantage of an excellent butter sale, the first such sale in months. I had to go early because in such circumstances the butter tends to move quickly, particularly on Tuesdays as students get a ten percent discount. As it turned out, I was able to pick up 5 pounds of butter without much hassle.

-Yesterday, by taking two trips to the law library, I was able to pick up a few old Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (which was Canada's highest court of appeal until 1949) rulings that I need/ed to read. Though they turned out not to be all that difficult to find, I had been allowing myself to neglect this task for the past several months.

-While at the law library I was reminded that I really don't like the way the Dalhousie law library is run, particularly in relation to non-law students. For instance, instead of automatically granting graduate students the full loan period for a book their system has a shorter loan period as the default (you have to know to ask for the extra time if you want it). Also, study rooms and certain databases are unavailable to non-law students. Such practices seem to run contrary to the idea of an academic library (providing access to information and furthering the creation of knowledge in an academic community), but they are also more restrictive than those of non-Dalhousie libraries to which I have access through consortial arrangements.

-I guess I should get back to work now that I have bragged about my butter score and vented about the Dalhousie law library.

A Few Quick Notes 462

-Today was a predominately overcast day in Halifax, though we did have occasional periods of more intense sun.

-Today at the grocery store I was able to purchase 22.2 pounds of food for $5.97. Even more impressive is that 20 of those pounds cost only $2.98. For those of you who are curious, I purchased 10 pounds of potatoes for $1.99, 10 pounds of carrots for $.99, and 2.2 pounds of green beans for $2.99.

-We had roast beef and mashed potatoes for dinner tonight. I quite enjoyed the meal, though isn't really that surprising as roast beef and mashed potatoes are two of my favourite foods (not that most of you really care).

-On Saturday I was reminded of my embryonic attempts at game development a few years ago with Montifax: The Board Game. Maybe I should try to bring this project back to life, at least on a part-time basis. I think it would be neat to eventually have a playable version of the game, even if that is as far as it goes.

-Friday's Pauly Shore show has come and gone. And while I didn't manage to get free tickets to the show, I was able to find something of a review from someone who did. As a side note, I can confirm that the local comedian, Peter White, who is positively mentioned in this review is as funny as suggested. I had the pleasure of seeing this guy perform a few weeks ago at a show at Bearly's.

-Even though it is now after midnight, I should get back to work and try to finish an article I have to read.

A Few Quick Notes 457

-We had another somewhat overcast day today. I guess there might have been a few sunny periods, though as I didn't really spend much time outside I can't really remember if there were or not. More recently there have been a few periods of very light drizzling. Hopefully this drizzle won't make the transition to full-fledged rain.

-I cranked out a quick loaf of bread today. I think I may have some as a snack later this evening.

-I managed to make it to the grocery store twice today. Not surprisingly, I was able to find quite a number of things that I forgot to buy on the second trip.

-I took a pretty satisfying nap this afternoon.

-Tomorrow, for the first time in three years I will be able to attend Dal's annual teaching assistant professional development session. Typically they schedule these sessions at times when I have classes. Apparently being so far along in your program that you don't have classes is best way to make sure that you will be able to attend.

-Wow, I should get back to work.

Big Day in Halifax Continued

Shortly after completing a post earlier today Jeannette and I made our way out to do some shopping. As we approach Spring Garden (not our shopping destination) it became clear that something was afoot.

As it turned out, we happened upon the Halifax Pride parade in full swing.

We saw some cross-dressers, something Jeannette was hoping for.



We also managed to catch a glimpse of a few hot firefighters.



Of course, most importantly, we were able to see Mr. Macpass, the Macpass mascot.



Then, after the parade and when we were on our way to our to the shopping centre, we happened to see an ambulance unloading a gurney and back board. After a few seconds we managed to figure out that the emergency service workers were dealing with an injury in the Halifax Commons skate park.



Quite a number of people were standing around and watching the proceedings. As you might have guessed, we did not veer from our course to get a look at the damage. Just seeing them load the back board into the impression in the skate park was enough.

Once we finished the first leg of our shopping trip we made a quick trip to one of the local grocery stores. As soon as we approached the store we could see that it was a good day to buy discount plants based on the displays on the sidewalk surrounding the store. Inside we managed to find a $3 coffee plant, a type of plant I have been looking for for about two years.



The above photo shows the plant after it had been re-potted.

I really can't wait to see this thing grow and develop coffee beans (though this will likely take some number of years).

This evening, though I really didn't expect to, Jeannette, Neil, Rebecca, and I all made our way to the Commons to watch Weezer and the Black Eyed Peas. We viewed the show from the area just beyond the event's fences. Though none of us are big fans of either of these groups, I think that it is safe to say that we enjoyed the show.



Not only was I pleased to see Fergie on the jumbotrons,



I was also quite pleased to hear the Black Eyed Peas perform the accompanying track of one of my favourite YouTube videos.



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Eventually they broke out the lasers and the good times really kicked off.

If you are interested, here is something of a video retrospective of our evening.



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Wow, so much more happened today than I originally expected would happen.