Logic and Me

I don't know why recipes are so hard to follow (see Twist: Technical Writing for another embarrassing example). Last time I baked a cake, I put too much sugar. Sometimes, if the ingredient is indented I don't see it (I tend not to read titles in red, either). This time, the ingredients were not listed in a logical manner (my logic) and the instructions were vague (it was a recipe transcribed, no doubt, from memory - but whose? a confused person, that's for sure). I managed to make a decent strawberry pudding with Paul's help - he pulled out the pudding when I realized I had forgotten to mix the eggs in! and proceeded to correct my mistake. We put it back in the oven. I then realized I hadn't put the required butter on the syrup you pour over it. Out of the oven it came again! By then, it didn't look like what it was supposed to but it turned out pretty good nevertheless.
Of course, it wasn't my fault. I decided the recipe writer must've been on drugs and proceeded to - yes, you guessed it - rewrite it to my satisfaction. And tonight, we are eating the same strawberry pudding just to prove my point (nobody is complaining). Btw - I just took it out of the oven and it is a nice golden colour... see for yourself.

Superstition

I was over at a friend's last week-end. He owns a store and was telling us about the new goods he had recently purchased. We got to talking about the cool umbrellas he carries (Yseult loves umbrellas) and he left the room and came back with a promo one. It features the polar caps and it looks really, really good. He got ready to open it and I suddenly felt uncomfortable "Surely he's not going to open it in the house? Maybe we'll all go on the balcony? You fool - what are you doing!!! You are not supposed to do that. You are only allowed to open it in the bathroom where you put it to dry!" Those thoughts spinned in my head fast and furious as quickly as I was trying to neutralize them, mock them and generally shut them down.
Wow - what a struggle! And to think I used to mock my friend who would toss salt over her shoulder if she (or I) knocked over the salt shaker. If I didn't toss salt over my shoulder, she would. It was just too strong an urge to block. Something we learned as kids and never fully understood (I think the salt blinds the devil that lurks in the shadows; as for the umbrella, I think it's a safety issue) but continue doing as adults. I couldn't believe I held such irrational and powerful thoughts.
The evening proceded without incident and - knock on wood - I hope the rest of the week continues that way...

Peaceful Canadians

For all the threats in the newspapers, there was no animosity displayed between the lawn chairs (cordoned off on the side) and the dancers. I had never been to a show where you can text messages on the big screen. It was a big part of the entertainment.... I taped that just for the fun of using the video feature on my phone...

I didn't enjoy the music as much as I did the CDs, which is a shame. I did get to buy more CDs - Metric and White Stripes - so that was cool. And I generally just enjoy hanging out at outdoor concert venues so all in all I had a good time...

Lawn Chair War

I changed camp this year and joined the lawn chair gang at the Blues fest. I'm not going to go and explain why I did that, I just did. Now I am dreading going to the concert, in fear I will be spat on and generally booed at. I will wear dark glasses and my very fast sneakers and hope I get through this ordeal without any permanent scars.

Keep your fingers crossed - I am hoping for rain to dampen the spirits of the other camp...

Canada Day riddle

Bear with me: I made up a riddle for Canada Day, but did not find the answer to it until today. What's red and white and moves?
It's me, walking with my new cell phone. The phone is white and has a red (detachable) faceplate. Spiffy! We bought it on Friday, I took pictures (yay) with it Saturday and I read the instruction manual (gasp! I hope you tech writers out there are proud of me) online Sunday. You think I would be able to make phone calls by Monday? Well, I was...
The camera is not bad at all and even has an integrated flash. We got a Canada Day rebate of $50 (I kid you not) on the package (we got 2). It has all sorts of cool features which I don't need now but might use down the road - who knows? Quite exciting. It had been a while since I had a new toy...

That's all the news, really. Had a quiet Canada Day. Had to deliver some files as I work for ... Americans who aren't patriotic about Canada... ; ) It's all right, we still had time for a little jaywalking in Merrickville - not sure if it's jaywalking if there are no sidewalks to go to and from... not many cars, either... Good fun.

I hope you all had a great Canada Day!