Movies
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934). I would watch anything with Leslie Howard in it.
Dangerous (1935) / All This, and Heaven Too (1940). I would also watch anything with Bette Davis in it.
The Awful Truth (1937). I would watch most movies with Cary Grant; this happens to be the one that started my classic movie obsession.
Ninotchka (1939). Garbo laughs!
How Green Was My Valley (1941)
Suspicion (1941) / Shadow Of A Doubt (1943) / Notorious (1946)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
Scarlet Street (1945)
Brief Encounter (1946)
Sabrina (1954)
Witness for the Prosecution (1957). The best movie on Canadian Netflix.
Some Like It Hot (1959). The best comedy of all time. Period.
Charade (1963)
Dangerous (1935) / All This, and Heaven Too (1940). I would also watch anything with Bette Davis in it.
The Awful Truth (1937). I would watch most movies with Cary Grant; this happens to be the one that started my classic movie obsession.
Ninotchka (1939). Garbo laughs!
How Green Was My Valley (1941)
Suspicion (1941) / Shadow Of A Doubt (1943) / Notorious (1946)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
Scarlet Street (1945)
Brief Encounter (1946)
Sabrina (1954)
Witness for the Prosecution (1957). The best movie on Canadian Netflix.
Some Like It Hot (1959). The best comedy of all time. Period.
Charade (1963)
Books
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters and Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. Who doesn't love an upper-class rural manor house setting? Appealing like Jane Austen and Downtown Abbey, but with the addition of suspense and a brooding atmosphere. (I recently read My Cousin Rachel as well, and may well continue on this Daphne du Maurier winning streak.)
Bleak House by Dickens. A memorable recent read.
Essays by George Orwell. My favourite non-fiction book.
Bedtime for Frances (a classic). My favourite children's book. Yes, there is a reference to spanking. Copyright 1960 - what do you expect?
Fifth Business by Robertson Davies. My favourite Canadian author; also, the book that proved to the non-Canadians at bookclub that we have fiction that's not over-rated.
Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell. This was such an enjoyable holiday read, all the more so for not anticipating how much I would like it. Wives and Daughters will be on my to-read list for later this year.
Currently checked out from VPL: not much!
Bleak House by Dickens. A memorable recent read.
Essays by George Orwell. My favourite non-fiction book.
Bedtime for Frances (a classic). My favourite children's book. Yes, there is a reference to spanking. Copyright 1960 - what do you expect?
Fifth Business by Robertson Davies. My favourite Canadian author; also, the book that proved to the non-Canadians at bookclub that we have fiction that's not over-rated.
Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell. This was such an enjoyable holiday read, all the more so for not anticipating how much I would like it. Wives and Daughters will be on my to-read list for later this year.
Currently checked out from VPL: not much!
Podcasts
Spilled Milk. (The beginning segment of Episode 52 on apple names still makes me laugh.)
Judge John Hodgman. Podcast justice.
Notes in Spanish (Inspired Beginners).
Judge John Hodgman. Podcast justice.
Notes in Spanish (Inspired Beginners).
Travel in the Pacific Northwest
The Southern Gulf Islands
Pender Island - Oak Bluffs was well worth a visit. Also - as of July 2011 - I found 3 vanilla beans for $5 at the Medicine Beach Market.
Galiano Island - Maybe it was the beautiful spring day when I went there, but I thought Dionisio Point was as beautiful as any place in BC that I'd ever been. (Access is by boat, only.) I also had a really excellent sandwich at the Grand Central Emporium & Diner (close to the ferry terminal).
Salt Spring Island - If you're on Salt Spring, do yourself a favour, and go to the Salt Spring Island vineyard for a glass of wine on their terrace; it's absolutely lovely. Then do yourself another favour and go (through some lovely woods) to the Salt Spring Island Cheese Company. Not sure where all the goats are considering they specialize in goats' cheese; the samplings on offer are plentiful and very very delicious. Moby's, a pub in Ganges, has excellent food.
Gabriola Island - I've been tempted to go back to Gabriola just for the Slow Rise bakery bread. On a trip a couple of years ago, I had a sundried tomato and feta loaf, and it was divine. I can also attest that the Arbutus Bluff B&B is just lovely; and as a cyclist, staying at the high point on the island ensures that you work off the bread.
Pender Island - Oak Bluffs was well worth a visit. Also - as of July 2011 - I found 3 vanilla beans for $5 at the Medicine Beach Market.
Galiano Island - Maybe it was the beautiful spring day when I went there, but I thought Dionisio Point was as beautiful as any place in BC that I'd ever been. (Access is by boat, only.) I also had a really excellent sandwich at the Grand Central Emporium & Diner (close to the ferry terminal).
Salt Spring Island - If you're on Salt Spring, do yourself a favour, and go to the Salt Spring Island vineyard for a glass of wine on their terrace; it's absolutely lovely. Then do yourself another favour and go (through some lovely woods) to the Salt Spring Island Cheese Company. Not sure where all the goats are considering they specialize in goats' cheese; the samplings on offer are plentiful and very very delicious. Moby's, a pub in Ganges, has excellent food.
Gabriola Island - I've been tempted to go back to Gabriola just for the Slow Rise bakery bread. On a trip a couple of years ago, I had a sundried tomato and feta loaf, and it was divine. I can also attest that the Arbutus Bluff B&B is just lovely; and as a cyclist, staying at the high point on the island ensures that you work off the bread.
Vancouver
Downtown, lunchtime: Finches (for the baguette sandwiches or for the soup/salad/bread combo), Nuba (for Najib's special cauliflower), Goldies (for the best place to grab a slice of pizza), and the Pourhouse (for great decor and lovely food and drink). Lunch, other: Las Tortas (they even have home-made potato chips). Dessert: Mondo Gelato (the best gelato in Vancouver. Edited to add: now called "Gelarmony"? Why? I can't even pronounce that.)
Pubs: The Railway Club and The Wolf and Hound (make sure you try the Black Plague stout). And not really a pub, but the Jericho Beach Sailing Centre is an excellent place to grab a burger and beer with an outstanding view.
Shopping: Chintz & Co for their extensive selection of realistic fake flowers and abundance of beautiful fabrics (supposedly for upholstery and drapes, but I'd wear them), and The Cross for all round loveliness.
Pubs: The Railway Club and The Wolf and Hound (make sure you try the Black Plague stout). And not really a pub, but the Jericho Beach Sailing Centre is an excellent place to grab a burger and beer with an outstanding view.
Shopping: Chintz & Co for their extensive selection of realistic fake flowers and abundance of beautiful fabrics (supposedly for upholstery and drapes, but I'd wear them), and The Cross for all round loveliness.
Food and Cooking
While I haven't made all of Smitten Kitchen's recipes, I've certainly tried. From an archive containing hundreds of recipes, these are the ones that have been added to my repertoire:
breakfast apple granola crisp
artichoke-olive crostini
butternut squash and carmelized onion galette (the wild mushroom and stilton galette was pretty awesome too)
warm butternut squash and chickpea salad
shakshuka
chard and white bean stew
raspberry limeade slushies (I actually prefer these without the soda water and would make them every day if it were not for the sugar content), and vermontucky lemonade
Elsewhere:
honey-mustard marinated tofu (even non-vegetarians will love this, promise)
this baked oatmeal changed my life (or at least my breakfast routine. I leave out the cloves, nutmeg, cardamom and coconut, use dairy milk instead of soy milk, and walnuts - not toasted, because I am lazy - in place of the pecans)
this is the pizza dough recipe I use
an easy and comforting carrot and lentil stew - more enticing than it sounds!
take this caramel corn to gatherings and win friends
easy, flaky pie crust (in the food processor, no less. shhh, it will be our secret)
make this peach-tomato-mozzerella crostini when you have friends coming round in the summer (or just eat a whole plate of it yourself - that's fine too)
Rebar. The recipes are a succession of winners. I am in the process of cooking the book.
breakfast apple granola crisp
artichoke-olive crostini
butternut squash and carmelized onion galette (the wild mushroom and stilton galette was pretty awesome too)
warm butternut squash and chickpea salad
shakshuka
chard and white bean stew
raspberry limeade slushies (I actually prefer these without the soda water and would make them every day if it were not for the sugar content), and vermontucky lemonade
Elsewhere:
honey-mustard marinated tofu (even non-vegetarians will love this, promise)
this baked oatmeal changed my life (or at least my breakfast routine. I leave out the cloves, nutmeg, cardamom and coconut, use dairy milk instead of soy milk, and walnuts - not toasted, because I am lazy - in place of the pecans)
this is the pizza dough recipe I use
an easy and comforting carrot and lentil stew - more enticing than it sounds!
take this caramel corn to gatherings and win friends
easy, flaky pie crust (in the food processor, no less. shhh, it will be our secret)
make this peach-tomato-mozzerella crostini when you have friends coming round in the summer (or just eat a whole plate of it yourself - that's fine too)
Rebar. The recipes are a succession of winners. I am in the process of cooking the book.
The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. I know, I know: everyone with an ice cream maker raves about this book. I can personally vouch for the strawberry frozen yogurt, toasted coconut ice cream, lemon-buttermilk sherbet, blackberry-lime sorbet, chocolate sorbet, and raspberry-rose (wine) sorbet. However, many of the ice creams call for a mixture of 1 part whole milk (3.25%) and 2 parts heavy (whipping) cream. As this is too rich for my taste, I've found that substituting half-and-half (10%) for the heavy cream still produces a delicious ice cream, without the formation of ice crystals from too low a fat content.
Red Velvet & Chocolate Heartache by Harry Eastwood. All of the recipes are for cakes and baked goods that have grated vegetables in them; I keep on coming back to this book and find it continually inspiring.
Red Velvet & Chocolate Heartache by Harry Eastwood. All of the recipes are for cakes and baked goods that have grated vegetables in them; I keep on coming back to this book and find it continually inspiring.