It’s summery!

Another image from the Caribbean, this time of rain coming in over the hills in Tobago.  I’m still in Ottawa, just vicariously enjoying the greenery.  I’ll soon switch over to Canadian photos as the green is sweeping through the trees, hills and gardens.  It will soon be lilac season, and that’s my favourite time of year for flowers.  I’m about to lose my Canadian status by saying how lovely it is to see dandelions on the grass verges — those little drops of golden sunshine spreading everywhere — I just smile when they’re there.  I’m told that’s because I never had to spend my childhood springs pulling them up by the roots to stop the spread, but the pollinators love them, and they just look happy.  Jerry is being a fibber… when he thinks he’s unobserved, he jumps up on the bed or sofa, but if I’m there, I get the puppy eyes!  Don is in his happy sports place (team plays again tonight) as there are so many games on that his hand gets cramped from changing channels!  I may or may not start dropping hints that we should go for a long drive tonight, which is just being a fire-starter 😆

I took a day off fully from my crochet project, just to give my hands a rest.  I’ll restart tomorrow, and I should’ve lost my frustration, so it won’t be worked into the project, and my hands will be relaxed.  I ordered another meal from the same place today; it’s an Italian inspired meal, with a chicken lasagne, salad, garlic bread and a cake for dessert.  The Vietnamese-inspired one was good, and I actually froze part of it so I’ll have it in the next week or so.  I have to say, on an unrelated matter, that I don’t like gluten-free baked goods.  I know that everyone gushes about how “you can’t tell the difference,” but I can.  Even if you don’t tell me in advance, there’s a distinct difference in texture which I don’t enjoy.  I’m really sorry to share that, but GF breads, cakes and muffins that are intended to substitute for wheat-based products have that unpleasant texture.  GF products that are “naturally GF” (ie, they’re not supposed to be light and fluffy) IMO taste better.  I can, and will, eat arepas, which are cornmeal based, and corn tortillas, cornbread (made without wheat flour) and they don’t have that odd texture.  I’d seriously prefer to skip breads altogether rather than substitute a GF bread product.  I will also add that I have the same feeling towards products like “the impossible burger.”  If I’m avoiding meat, then I don’t want to eat things that look / fake the taste of it.  I’ll eat other things.  Add that cauliflower “rice” is not rice.  It’s cauliflower.  I enjoy rice, and have no  desire to replace it with a minced vegetable that I’d eat in its natural form.  Same with cauliflower “pizza” — the texture is wrong.  If you’re following a vegan diet, congratulations for you.  But for myself, when I’m eating vegan meals (I did date a Brahmin Hindu many years ago,  and I was diligently vegan while we were together, but who would collapse if someone in the next house opened a pack of meat!  He was a bit extra.) We ate well, and while I got a little tired of geera and hing none of what we ate was one food pretending to be another.  I think that’s my main objection — Don’t have one food masquerading as another.  Eat food, mostly plants, is a decent motto, not “transform actual food to look, smell and taste like something else, losing most of the benefits in the process.” #endrant.

I know it’s early, but I have a few things that I want to do so I’m writing this before I go to attend to them.  The puppy is curled up with Don and ignoring me, so I’ll take advantage of that  Wishing you a good night and a fun weekend!