Whether we win or lose this series, the Blue Jays have taught me one thing this year: to never lose hope. No matter how they have been beaten this year, they always come back fresh the next game. Even when all bets are against them, they take every chance to strike back.
I don’t watch a lot of sports, but I have been following these post-season baseball games. There’s a fire in the Jays that I admire and that is their spirit of never giving up.
Today I went to my first ever book signing. Jenny Lawson (aka The Bloggess) was making her only Canadian stop for her new release Furiously Happy, which shares her stories on depression and mental illness in the most authentic (and somehow hilarious) way possible. Lawson as a writer has made me appreciate the bizarre, weird and sometimes hard-to-get-through moments in life. As someone who has depressive moments, this book (and her other/blog) has helped me see those times in a different way and acknowledge that I’m not alone in this fight.
I arrived 2 hours early to the 7pm book signing and was too awkward to ask anyone how things worked so I left for 15 minutes to get food. Little did I know, when I came back (at 5:15pm), people were already seated and I was put in group 3 here in the back. I underestimated that her fans would probably be just as OCD as I was.
Jenny read us the first two chapters of the book and answered questions from the crowd. I found her very humble and down to earth. Also just as hilarious as the book. She basically talks like she writes.
After answering some questions from the crowd, she signed all our books and took photos with us! She took the time have a short chat with each person as they came up. She’s such a kindhearted person and I could tell she loved hearing how we connected with the book. Here’s my super awkward photo with her.
My book signed.
Also I couldn’t help taking a photo with Rory.
This County Cider is sold in what looks like a pop bottle. It’s a dry cider, a lot like the pear one that I tried a few posts back. It’s crisp but not as apple-tasting as I would have expected. At 6.5% though, I think I will continue drinking it until Stephen Harper is not Prime Minister anymore.
We wanted to watch that epic Game 5 at Tallboys but it was unfortunately packed by the time I got out of work. I decided to head over to their other restaurant Wenona a few blocks west. It has the same great craft beer, but a different type of menu. I ordered the sliders and choose to mix up pulled pork and brisket. There was also the option vegetarian but I don’t need that! The sliders were served on a steamed bao instead of a regular bun which was a nice twist. I chose to eat mine with crunchy fries.
I also had an order of plantain chips which were like bruschetta on fried plantains instead of bread.
Nash had Catch of the Day, fish and chips battered with Trailhead beer.
My drink of the night was Brickworks 501 semi-sweet cider.
I couldn’t resist getting their smores for dessert! It’s warm baked marshmallows and chocolate served with some graham crackers of course.
This place is still relatively new but it has a lovely homey vibe and is definitely a great place to watch the game that not many people around the block know about yet!
I love cider and our liquor stores seem to have slightly different ones at other locations. This Tempt 9 cider is made in Denmark and has strawberry preserves and key lime juice. It is so sweet and refreshing that it drinks much like Kool-aid (so keep it away from the children).
The Blue Jays are doing awesome this baseball season. They are currently in the ALCS. There’s a lot of talk and making fun of bandwagon fans. But, I don’t see that as a problem.
Why should people need to dedicate themselves to all 200+ games all season in order to be a “real fan”. It’s kind of equivalent to hipsters who say things like “I liked the band when they were playing in their garage.” It’s nice if you supported the team all along, but there’s nothing wrong with people who join in once the team is doing well.
There’s pride in the city when we’re winning. We can’t always be there 100% when they lose, I mean that’s why we end up with mediocre teams like the Leafs (just kidding). Being there when the team is doing well shows the city (as well as the people who own the team, Rogers) of the value of keeping all the current players on contract and continuously on making it better. It keeps the team putting their best effort forward to keep the respect of their fans.
With Toronto’s flux of tapa restaurants, it’s always much more fun to go with a bunch of people so you can order a bunch of things. My friends and I recently hit up Patois, where Caribbean meets Asian food. For example, what you see above is a Jerk Chicken Chow Mein, a twist on a Chinese classic which definitely had a spicy kick.
This grilled corn with cilantro & lime was gobbled up fast. It was a bit pricey considering it only had one cob.
We had some vegetarians at our table so the Crunchy Chinese salad with napa cabbage, romaine, wonton crisps, spicy plum dressing provided some freshness in their stomachs.
These Kimchi Potstickers “Pierogi” Style Pot Stickers were stuffed with kimchi, bacon, sour cream and scallions.
I ordered my own little scallop and shrimp ball thing which was much like the traditional one with different breading and a tangy sauce of C-Plus and vinegar!
One of our favourites was definitely the O.G. Fried Chicken & Watermelon Pickle served with a sweet Sriracha sauce and ginger.
Jerk PorkBelly with Chicharron came with traditional Asian BBQ sauce.
Our vegetarian friends had their own “fried chicken” sort of with O.G. Fried Cauliflower & Watermelon Pickle.
Called the 4/20 Broccoli Buds these had roasted, hemp oil, hemp hearts, edamame hummus, Pecorino, savoury crumbles. I love roasted broccoli in anything.
To drink, I had a couple of peach-infused cocktails (that I totally forgot the name of). Whatever it was was good enough to have multiple and maybe that’s why I forgot what it was.
The plus of having multiple people is.. you can order ALL the desserts! The first was this cheesecake infused french toast. Yes, you heard that right my friend.
The second was this seemingly innocent ice cream that had a hint of jalepeno. It was definitely not for the faint of heart and we had mixed feelings throughout.
Lastly was this brownie ice cream sandwich which was rich and just want one would want in a dessert.
Our experience at Patois was definitely a delicious adventure, but I do highly recommend bringing friends to make the journey worth it.
We’re less than a week away from voting. How great would it be if we woke up on October 20th and Harper was no longer in power?
Don’t forget to vote on the 19th! I already did with advanced voting over the weekend. If everyone votes we can really have a better country on October 20th. Vote with your heart, not strategically. If everyone turns up to vote for who they believe in, I truly believe that Harper wouldn’t be in power.
Learn more about #ImagineOct20th.
Here are some photos of my Thanksgiving weekend! On Saturday I went to a wedding dinner.
This is my lovely sister.
Chocolate as wedding favours is always a win!
Matching gold cake!
Our first course for dinner was this roast pig with flashing disco eyes. I somehow was too busy eating (and talking to people) the rest of dinner that I forgot to take photos until dessert.
Here is dessert. Some cream puffs and other things I don’t know how to describe!
On Sunday, we celebrated Thanksgiving and I again cooked the family turkey! Here are some random photos of our dinner (and Teddy).
Isn’t it creepy when you are seated next to a tank of fish at a Chinese restaurant? A few weeks ago, we were having dinner with family when I realized the tank of fish we were sitting next to were staring at us as we ate their kin at the table.
I wonder if they knew what was going on. I hope we are never seated next to a fish tank again.
Tiana Feng 