December 25, 2011
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Playing in the Snow

We enjoyed Christmas Eve at my sister’s up in Hockley Valley, and were delighted to see a coating of snow on the ground. The dogs especially loved romping around in it. Memphis of course managed to get a tail full of burrs in no time.

December 23, 2011
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Santa Claus

This post is for all of you who were thinking, hey how come that Mister Anchovy guy never posts Christmas music. Let’s start off with Sonny Boy Williamson (II)…he just wants to find his Santa Claus and stay out of jail…

and finally, here are the Jive Turkeys performing Get Down Santa

December 22, 2011
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Veggie Cabbage Rolls

Among my earliest memories is the smell of cabbage rolls in the oven. My mom’s cabbage rolls rocked. These were not health food. They contained beef, pork and veal sauteed up with salt pork, which provided the tell-tale odour.

On Sunday, I’m making a Christmas dinner for the family on Tuffy P’s side. We have a vegan in the family, and although we usually have a turkey dinner on Christmas, I also like to make something special for him. At a previous family gathering, V. made a batch of vegan cabbage rolls and they were really fantastic, so tonight I made a batch ahead. On Christmas, I just have to slowly warm them in the oven.

My mom knew just the right cabbages to select and each cabbage roll was the perfect size and shape. My effort is much much clumsier, but I managed to get the job done. They’ve just now come out of the oven and they’re looking mighty good.

 

December 21, 2011
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List-Free Zone

They’ve started. The litany of year end lists have begun. Soon, there will be lists everywhere you look. The best of this, the worst of that, lists of books, lists of movies, lists of deaths, lists of restaurants, lists of everything you can think of. I know, I just made a list of kinds of lists. Mea maxima culpa. However, it will be the last list I publish here in 2011.

If you like year-end lists, there are many many places to go for them, but this isn’t going to be one of them. Enjoy. Don’t let me stop you. But when you tire, when you think I just can’t look at another list, you know what to do, friends. That’s right, visit 27th Street. Come on in, stay awhile. I have some nice scotch. Would you like a dram? Rest up, listen to some accordion music, and when you’re ready to sally forth back into the world of year end lists, I’ll just say so long.

December 21, 2011
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Short

This is the shortest day of the year and from this day on, everything is looking up. Tomorrow, there will be 4 seconds more daylight and I plan to enjoy each of those seconds. The winter solstice itself, when the axial tilt of the earth’s polar hemisphere is as far as it gets from the sun, happens sometime after midnight, but today is the shortest day.

Winter is here. Bring it on.

 

 

December 20, 2011
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A stabbing in Long Branch…

A stabbing occurred this evening in our community. I’m not sure what time, but I drove out to the No Frills to pick up some bread at about 7:30 and saw no police activity so it must have happened sometime between then and now (typing this at 10:45). According to 680 radio news a man in his 30’s has been taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after a confrontation between two men resulted in a stabbing.

This stabbing happened around Lakeshore and 26th Street. We live south of Lakeshore on 27th Street. The way the streets work around here, 23rd, 25th and 27th are all on the south side, and 26th runs north from Lakeshore. Don’t get carried away with this logic though, because 28th runs south of Lakeshore.

We live in what is mostly a great neighbourhood but there is for sure some criminal activity along the Lakeshore strip through Long Branch, New Toronto and Mimico, especially at night. I don’t have any more information about the stabbing tonight, and I guess violence can happen anywhere. It seems extra shocking though when it happens a short walk from home.

 

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