local produce

Sometimes I am reminded that the internet is a magical thing.

For example, I want to know what local fruits and vegetables are currently in season as I kickstart my month of vegetarianism - da da da DAAAAAA! There it is, exACTLY what I need.

San Francisco's Civic Tower

525 Golden Gate is a 14-storey office project designed to consume 20% less energy than what is required by the California energy use code. I dig ambition!

GO CANUCKS GO!!

Plastic Bag Solution!!

I'm all for banning plastic bags (go Leaf Rapids, MB!), but I was stuck on what to do with my garbage if I only used cloth (grocery bags have been the containers for my kitchen refuse since I was a kid - weird. Am I emotionally attached to throwing my garbage in a Safeway bag??).








Then I found biodegradable kitchen waste can liners @ EcoSafe (a Canadian company). Although I'm a cheap bastard and my current method of garbage disposal is free, I feel like it's worth the $3.99 CAD/30 bags to kick my grocery bag dependence. I will not be ruled by plastic!

And now I can look terribly stylish when I carry my groceries home in edgy cloth bags!

Yam and Black Bean Burritos

This is my new favourite batch cook for weekday lunches! It's easy, filling, healthy and delicious. I like to serve it with a little avocado and salsa, but there is so much flavour that it's just fine on it's own. (This is the only Mexican-like food I have EVER seen Christopher eat without loads of sour cream and cheese!)

Adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites:
(Serves 4 to 6) :: Prep time 35 minutes :: Bake time 30 minutes

5 cups peeled cubed yams
4 tsp ground cumin
4 tsp ground coriander
4 1/2 cups cooked black beans (three 15 ounce cans drained)
2/3 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves
2 tbsps fresh lime juice
1 tsp salt
8 eight inch flour tortillas (I endorse Grimm's Flaxseed - yum!)

Preheat oven to 350.

Place yams in medium saucepan with salt and water. Cover and bring to a boil, then simmer until tender (about 10 minutes). Drain and mash. Add cumin and coriander. Set aside.

While yams are simmering, mash black beans (I like to leave them somewhat whole to add a bit of texture). Mix in cilantro, lime juice and salt. Combine yam and black bean mixtures.

Lightly oil large baking dish. Spoon about 2/3 to 3/4 cup of filling in the center of each tortilla, roll it up, and place it (seam down) in the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

from the ground

what did i do last sunday? procrastinate my schoolwork. this is what that looks like:

will ferrell's landlord

video.

warning: caitlinspencer.com is not responsible for injuries caused by the viewing of this video.

Go CANUCKS Go!

I wonder if Gracie stayed awake through the fourth overtime.

Zero to Hero

Selling Sex in Heaven is an enraging and heartbreaking documentary.

• Most girls in the sex trade in the Philippines have been trafficked from the poor, rural provinces and were tricked into coming to Angeles City with promises of jobs in factories and restaurants;
• Once they lose their "cherries," usually through rape or abuse, they are condemned to live their lives servicing local or foreign men as prostitutes;
• There are estimated to be 375,000 women and girls in the sex trade in the Philippines, mostly between the ages of 15 and 20, though some are as young as 11;
• The price of a Philippine Adventure Tour for Americans can cost as little as $1645.00, including roundtrip airfare, hotel accommodations, and guided tours to bars where men can buy sex for $20.00 US;

These "ambassadors" of North American culture disgrace us as they degrade foreign women. These sexist, racist men are a pathetic, disgusting minority of our society. I encourage all the decent men of this country (who are the majority) to shame these losers out of their deplorable behaviour.

Plastic isn't just bad for our landfills.

With constant media fear-mongering about global warming, the reality of humanity's precarious existence on this planet begins to hit home. The current trend seems to be the movement away from plastic grocery bags. People are very concerned about the plastic accumulating in our landfills...but what about the plastic accumulating in our bodies? Read this.

I was cheating on Chris,

but I ended it on Friday.





















My affair was hurting our relationship and it was hurting me, but I couldn't make myself stop. I was so infatuated...he had so much power over me. He offered me everything - instant gratification. I turned him on constantly and he had the ability to keep me distracted for hours on end. It was so easy. I'm alone at home two days a week to get course work done, so we would spend all day together. For the last month, Chris was working late so we would be together all evening as well. I know it's sick - being with someone else, right there, in our own bedroom! I was wrecking myself with guilt, but I just couldn't say no.

That is, until Friday.

On Friday, we sold that damn Sony Trinitron, and I haven't been the same person since!

(10 Financial Reasons to Turn Off Your TV)

the new irack from apple

tammy bannister rules!

"World Change Starts with Educated Children"

"In 1998, John was an overworked Microsoft executive looking for the quiet solitude of a trekking vacation. While backpacking in the Himalayas, John met a middle-aged Nepalese man who invited him to visit a school in a neighboring village. Hoping for a chance to see the real Nepal, rather than his tourist's trek, John agreed. Little did he know this short detour would change his life forever." (Read the rest of the story here.)

Let's help John change the world by donating today. "Every dollar donated equals one book donated and an opportunity to change the lives of some of the 770 million illiterate people in the world."

#1 Google for "Caitlin Spencer"

Google "Caitlin Spencer" and in the top search item you will find the homepage of the other Caitlin Spencer. Caitlin's Western Michigan University page is fairly spartan so I don't know much about her. I wish she would update her site because I have so many questions!

1. Did she learn everything she needed to know for the rest of her life?
2. Did she make top 5 in College Works Painting management?
3. Is she one of the blonds, the pink shirt or the dismembered head?









4. Did she get more "envolved in the years to come"?
5. Did she successfully complete her marketing major?
6. Did she and Ben continue to work well together?
7. Has she seen new things and explored new places - "esspecially" new countries?

Oh Caitlin. I wonder where you have gone.

"she runs guns everyone wants guns she runs guns everyone wants"

"...OOOoooEEEooo......Doo doo do do dodo"

Figure that since I've been out in Vancouver for 3 years consecutively, it's about time I get to know the local music scene.

I'm starting with Jeremy Fisher. After one listen through the album here's what I have to say. His voice has hints of Bob Dylan (with much more lyricism). The rhythms grab me like my favourite Paul Simon tunes. And heck, the dude writes genuine poetry!

"Smiling with determination
Her eyes betray worries to me
Okay, nothing ain't perfect
But perfect ain't nothing anyway"

this. is. gold.

Alanis Morissette parodies Fergie Ferg. The contrast between the rich vocals of this true songstress, and the cheap lyrics/moves of that mediocre coked-out entertainer makes for some gut-wrenching goodness. Enjoy.



Special thanks to Mike for sharing his find!

Lindor Stracciatella

Pure white chocolate divinity. A delectable sphere of hard white chocolate embedded with contrasting crunchy flecks surrounds unadulterated creamy white chocolatey goodness. It's limited edition so try one today!