If we were having coffee, I’d ask you how you want yours? Cappuccino? Latte? Regular? Decaf? Maybe you would prefer tea. All good as it would be my pleasure to offer you exactly what you want. I would even offer you a little something sweet I baked. How better to start the day? I’d also tell you that I should probably be making a meal for my client instead of writing this but feel this is more of a must. It may also be because I just read the most enlightening piece called “The Crossroads of Should and Must” which really resonated with me. Worth the read when you have more than five minutes. I really “should” start sharing blog posts on “Medium”!
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you I had a fabulous and busy week! I know at our last coffee talk I mentioned my new job at Pier 1, but now that I have worked a grand total of five shifts, well, actually, four shifts and one quarterly meeting, I can confirm that I am truly enjoying it. The staff are great, the atmosphere is fun and comfortable though we never forget we are there to do our job, the boss is beyond pleasant and the customers are wonderful. I mean, can you ever be unhappy inside a Pier 1 store? I say nay. I even made some sales on my very first time out on the floor! I admit I was a bit nervous and worried I’d look the lost soul but I managed to pull it off and got positive feedback to boot. I know it will get ever more hectic the closer we get to Christmas but I’m feeling the buildup will prepare me.
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you that my good friend, David Croteau, full-time electrical engineer and part-time Farmer (his dream is to one day be full-time) at Domaine Britannia Mills, asked me to help him participate in a “Sweet and Spicy” event held by Mangeons Montréal/Let’s Eat Montreal at the SoupeSoup site in Old Montreal (apologies, the site is only in French). He grew 53 types of hot peppers this year and sells them in various forms: fresh (in season), dried, in mash form (basically ground up peppers in vinegar which chefs buy to create their own sauces), sauces and in powder form. Let us just say that his chili powder is so not what you buy in the grocery store! To help him show off said chili powders, I made five batches of sweet and spicy nuts in increasing heat. We started with the Yellow Granada Seasoning, then Red Trinidad Seasoning, Chocolate Habañero, Chocolate Ghost and finally the T.S. Moruga. These are the official names of said chili peppers and not some mixture of ingredients. I made exactly the same recipe, just changing the type of chili. It was fun to see the wimps versus the chili-heads. Even the biggest amateurs of hot and spicy broke out into a sweat on the Moruga nuts! There was something for everyone. I also decided to bring some of my spicy apple jelly that we served on crackers with cream cheese – quite the hit as well. People wanted to cool their mouths with the jelly only to find there was a zing to be had there as well! I didn’t realise that I could have brought jars to sell. D’oh! Next event, I can guarantee I will be better prepared. That is, if I get more than two days’ notice!
It was so much fun to participate in such an event which helped to showcase all sorts of yummy eats. From “Bloody Mary Chocolates” to various jellies, to salsas, hot sauces, spicy PB & J, the coolest drinks ever (will sooo be making these at my next party!) and many more yummy treats. It was an opportunity for both David and I (merci encore, David) to showcase our wares, share business cards and hopefully create opportunities for both of us. We were a great team, truly complimenting each other. I hope we get a chance to work again together in the near future. Who knows? Maybe one day our wares will be displayed in food shops around Montreal!
If we were having coffee, I would tell you that, once again, I have been blessed by Mick’s friends (and, of course, now mine). Both Bill and André worked hard at sourcing the best snow tires at the best price for me. André came through and not only purchased them for me, he also installed them AND made me supper. I mean, come on. Where else can you get such service? I feel the very nice bottle of wine I brought was so not enough to thank him so I’ll be having him and Tammy over for dinner in the very near future.
If we were having coffee, I’d admit to a few things: Firstly, I did not treat Zeke to any decent walks worth mentioning. I can only blame the trying to better organise my time with the new job and still cooking for the clients. I hope to do better in the following week. Secondly, I am a tad mad at myself for putting myself in a less-than-desirable position. I shall call it a life lesson and move forward, learning from my mistakes. One must respect oneself at all times.
I think I’ve rambled enough and taken enough of your time. I started this post yesterday (Friday) and it is now Sunday morning, 1:00 am! Between cooking, working, laundry and reading – trying vainly to catch up on the blogs I follow, I wrote this in bursts and spurts!
I do wish you a most wonderful week ahead and will definitely be reading the other weekend coffee shares hosted by the lovely Diana of Part-Time Monster – you can click on that link or on the image above to check out her post and then click on the blue frog to check out the other participants’ stories. And, should you be tempted, you can add your own two cents’ worth!
I do hope you enjoyed my ramblings…
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On her way to bed, she sees that a friend liked her post and realises she totally forgot to mention a cool happening this past Wednesday!
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Omigosh! How could I totally forget? On Wednesday, I had lunch with Christina (childhood friend and neighbour) and Bobby Maruvada and his boys, Tal and Gil. I had not seen Bobby since sixth grade! Seriously. How can I possibly be old enough to say I haven’t seen someone in forty years? I stupidly did not take any pictures of the five of us…thinking I would join them for dinner – but it ended up being the same night as the Sweet and Spicy event. My feet did not permit me to go gallivanting around Montreal! So… Bobby, I hope you don’t mind that I stole your selfie with your boys form your Facebook page!! Was so fabulous hearing about all your adventures and the cool Hollywood life you lead!
A Dalectable Life 