Chorizo - You should go NOW

It's not exactly a nice place to go, and it's not exactly a convenient location either, but Chorizo Mexican Grill really did it for me on my first visit the other day. It's located on Southdown Road next to the LCBO in the strip mall. Not the best visual, but once you get inside, your nose will be full of the scents of something sensational. It's your basic fast food joint, some tables and a lineup to order. Being my first time I had no idea what to order, but my friend made it easy for me - Chicken Burrito. There is a more extensive menu containing taco salads, quesadillas and with everything you have you choice of meat, chicken is rarely unsatisfying so I knew it was a safe call. A burrito and a drink costs about $10, but when you receive your burrito, it's well worth it as it's HUGE, I couldn't even finish mine and I eat A LOT. After ordering, you choose your toppings. First, beans. I chose black beans, but you can also go no beans and get grilled vegetables instead. Then I added lettuce, cheese, guacamole, tomato salsa (they have mango or corn instead) and sour cream on top. You have a choice between hot sauces, but I opted out as I'm pretty sensitive to spice.

I brought my ginormous burrito to a table and went in for the first bite and it was AMAZING. I knew that it would be good (because how could that mixture of toppings NOT be good), but it was even better than I expected. I think that is all thanks to the wrap used to make it. It was warm, soft, fresh and tasted simply delicious. This burrito was better than any burrito I've ever had, and quicker and cheaper than most sit-down mexican restaurants. It will leave you full and satisfied, so I suggest going right away, although there may be one problem.. it's competition. If you drive to Port Credit, there is a famous burrito place, Burrito Boys and although many port credit natives tell me that Chorizo wins, I think I'll have to test it for myself - you'll have to wait for my next blog!

Great Website for when you have NO idea

http://www.whatthefuckshouldimakefordinner.com/

On the other hand, when you have a general idea of the ingredients you want to use, or you are just looking to salivate at some pictures of food, check out

http://foodgawker.com/

Why Are Cell Phones So Shitty?

This is the question that has been on my mind for a long time. With today's lifestyle, a cell phone is close to a necessity for almost everyone, yet they are like a plague on society. You need one, yet it will never work as you want it to - at least that's my experience. For example, today, since I'm at home now, I had to change my number to a local one. First, I called Rogers, and faked being my mom (since she's the main name on the account), but unfortunately got her birthday wrong by one year (errrr). When I was informed of this, I told the girl on the other line that I was her daughter and I was just trying to change my phone number to a local number since I'm now home from school. She told me that I was an authorized user, but that I could not do that. Huh? Since 6 months ago when my mom made me an authorized user so that I could make changes to my account, I have not been allowed to do anything. I've tried changing my plan to save some money, which I was not allowed to do (actually they told me I wasn't an authorized user, and my mom later called greatly displeased with their idiocy), but now, something as simple as changing my phone number was not a possibility.

When I was able to change my number (by being oh so resourceful and using facebook as the source for my mother's birthday, and then again pretending to be her - except having all the right information this time), it was time to send my new number to my contact list. Most phones have the convenient option of sending out mass messages to entire contact lists, or creating a group with your entire contact list to send a message to, but unfortunately not the fine piece of technology that I own. I start adding contacts to a message ONE BY ONE. After a bunch, I realize there might be a cap on the number of people you can send to, and maybe my phone is not telling me (highly likely considering just how quality it is) so I send off my first batch. Once I start my second batch, the message gets sent back to me "Unable to send - Too many". Okay great. By now I've realized there is a way to create groups, so I go ahead and make one, but of course to add contacts, it is done ONE BY ONE. The cap is at 50 so I add people until I reach 50. Back to composing a message, I send it out to the group - sorry, max 20 recipients for one message. At this point I've dropped numerous F bombs, and I'm at the point of giving up, but since a) I'm a huge loser and worry that people actually even care about my new phone number and b) I'm a huge loser and had nothing better to do with my time I decide to make groups of 20 people. I'm finally able to send out the message to my eagerly waiting contact list. I can finally relax, a little although I'm not pleased with my phone. After a few minutes, I receive a message back "Error - too many". This is it. Not only have the messages not been sent, but since my phone does not keep track of outgoing messages (seriously - I know you probably didn't think this existed) I have no idea who didn't get it. Fuck it. This is so over - I have now finally come to the conclusion that whoever didn't get it, probably did not care.

I have never been so fed up with a phone, and previous to this phone I had one that shut down every 7-10 minutes and had to be turned back on. I am so ready to give in and buy a blackberry - not only did my phone cause me all this stress, but like I said above it does not save outgoing messages, AND it does not save words in my t9 - yes these are not that big of problems, but it's seriously annoying when you have to type fuck in by hand EVERY SINGLE TIME. I've always been against blackberries for many reasons. First I am a drunken idiot, and have lost my phone on numerous occasions, but being oh so lucky to have such unfortunate phones, I have always gotten it back. Secondly, I do not like the idea that people know when I have read their bbm. This is a trap to keep you in a conversation, or to stress you out in answering something that really you needed more time to answer, but are feeling time pressure due to the person waiting on the other end.

I went up to the mall to rogers, and looked at the phones. A blackberry was definitely out of the question - my mom wasn't allowing me to resign any contracts, and they were way too expensive anyways. I looked at the other phones, but since I'd had some time to calm down, I asked the guy working there if maybe he would help me make my phone slightly less shitty. He was able to figure out how to save my outgoing text messages, which is a slight upgrade. I walked out of the store fairly satisfied, and I was glad I had not given into the blackberry.

Home

I'm back in the arms of my mother for the next 4 months. After 8 months of living alone, I have returned to the comfort of the home I have grown up and lived in for the past 20 years. I want to continue blogging, but with all the new things and new emotions that are coming about being home, my blog is about to take a very different turn. A lot of blogs out there document people's lives and their feelings, and although in my head I'm thinking 'Who really cares?', I've found this place for me to vent, to write, and to share with others. Yes, as my first post states, this is cyber pollution, but I'm about to give it a shot.
Bon Appétit ! (Although you may be hearing less about food....but knowing me - unlikely)

Success!!

I succeeded in making hot dogs with bacon and avocado just as I posted below! I spent the other evening with the boys and dipped into the marijuana (a rare occasion for me as I rarely smoke anything). After numerous joints, the munchies set in, and I was already thinking of all the possibilities. We could order something, or we could go out and grab ingredients to make something! With the bacon and avocado on my mind, i suggested bacon-wrapped hot dogs with avocado to the boys and they were more than happy with the idea. For some odd reason I also thought about Whoopie Pies (like a home-made Oreo), and feeling extremely ambitious, I decided we would make those too.
While searching my favourite website( ), my friend, Chloe came online and I just had to tell her our plans. She was the one who first introduced me to "Whoopie Pies" as I had never heard of them before this year. She was excited and although sober, she wanted to join the fun and help with the baking. She made her way over, and we set out on a mission to get the needed ingredients.
Perhaps it was the drug, but I couldn't help but to burst into laughter upon the site of our checkout - hot dogs, bacon, flour, cocoa, and assorted baking supplies. Looking back on it maybe it really wasn't that funny, but that's besides the point. It was time to head home for an epic baked meal.
We began with the hot dogs, the guys helped too. We wrapped all of them in bacon and set them on the frying pan to cook. While we waited, the buns were put in the oven for toasting, and then when the buns finished we slabbed on some sour cream and guacamole. When the hot dogs had finished, we placed them in this wonderful hot dog bun. Changing things up a little from original plan, we grated cheese on top - how delicious does this sound!?!? Well it was amazing. We made 20 hot dogs, and all but 2 were eaten that night by myself and 4 guys (Chloe was a little bit turned off of them - I don't know why?!).
After the hot dogs, it was time for the Whoopie Pies. All I can say is that they were amazing, and when everyone got to try it, they all yelled "Whoopie!!" (har har)

Easy & Delicious

Frozen fruit - oh the possibilities of frozen fruit - from smoothies to pies to your own special dessert. The next time you have the urge for a treat, look to your freezer. Choose out your favourite combination of fruit (or whatever you have in your freezer) and throw it into a large enough pot with just the tiniest bit of water and begin to boil. Continue boiling until reaching desired tenderness (without burning). There are a whole range of possibilities you can do with it now. First, you can make juice concentrate. For this, you'll want to boil until very tender, and then puree in a blender. You can freeze this and later mix with water for a tasty juice. You can also use just the concentrate on it's own to mix into alcoholic beverages (perhaps Tequila Sunrise with pureed mangoes instead of orange juice).

If you are looking for something a bit less liquidy, keep your fruit in solid form, add a little bit of sugar and use as a topping for oatmeal, yogurt or any dessert you please. I personally love to mix it with some dry oats and eat it just like that. Similar to a "fruit crisp" pie. Give it a try sometime soon! It'll be an excellent and easy treat to celebrate the finishing of exams.

Soothe Your Tastebuds

Sorbet is my favourite treat to refresh my mouth and (for real) soothe my taste buds. It's the remedy for almost any ailment from a hangover to the ever-lasting battle with the after-meal taste in your mouth (often experienced as an unidentifiable mixture of flavours leaving the mouth bland and slightly parched). The other day, after a night of heavy drinking I went out shopping with my friend, Chloe. Upon getting into the sun, I knew that things would be a little rough - hydration was extremely necessary. It was a beautiful day and we decided that when finished with our shopping adventure, it would be essential to grab some sorbet and eat it in the park. From this point on, the only thing on my mind was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow (sorbet at the end of shopping). For the next three hours, nothing could alleviate my hangover, and I knew there was only one possibility - sorbet. We finally decided it was time.

One thing you have to remember when purchasing sorbet, is not to be stingy. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT go for something cheap. It will not be true sorbet and it will not leave you with the satisfaction you deserve. You must splurge. If in the Montreal area, I strongly recommend bilboquet (a Montreal brand), but if you are not in the area, a brand by the name of "fresca" should fulfill your needs.

If you are suffering from an illness and in need of mouth refreshment, I strongly recommend going for a citrus sorbet. You will most definitely feel refreshed. Lemon is my favourite. On the other hand, if you are looking for a tasty treat, you can afford to be much less selective. Let your taste buds run wild with all the choices. I personally stick to more traditional flavours, and will often choose lemon or raspberry sorbet - they will never disappoint.

Bacon + Avocado = Love

THEY WERE MADE FOR EACH OTHER!

Bacon and avocado in a salad, on a sandwich (I like it with goat cheese and tomato) and even.... A HOT DOG. One time in New York I had a hot dog that was wrapped in bacon and had guacamole on top! Let me tell you, it was delicious - called a Chihuahua (check it out if you are ever in NYC).

Power of Bacon? Fact or Fiction?

Every week when I need groceries, I usually go on Mondays in order to get the 10% student discount at Provigo (Yeeeahh Buddy). This past week, I wanted to stock up in order to make some really good meals as I'd spent the previous week eating on campus at subway (see below). Spending about $70, of course I had bacon in there. Bacon can make almost any meal delicious with it's salty yet succulent flavour. Upon getting home and unpacking my groceries, I look down at my bacon to see the date "April 21st" posted on it. Seriously? My bacon is going bad in two days. One pound of bacon + 2 days = cardiac arrest, or does it?

About a week ago, my friend told me a fairly funny story about her high school years. Her mom used to make bacon every single morning and it was beginning to get on her nerves - she was going to school everyday smelling like bacon, so she decided to confront her mom. Her mom exclaimed, "But this is how you are going to get all the boys! Boys love a girl that smells like bacon!!" Is this true? I know the smell of bacon is alluring - everytime someone makes bacon in my house I am immediately drawn to the kitchen in hopes to get a slice, but can the smell draw people anywhere? Can the smell draw a boy to a girl?

I've spent the last two days eating massive amounts of bacon, and have seen no such result. Does this mean bacon has no power as a device of attraction? As part of my research I have spent time reading articles on bacon (I have a lot of time on my hands), and found that other believe in it's power as an aphrodisiac, as well as it's power to cut through metal plates when lit on fire (unimportant for my research, but still pretty cool). I am not quite ready to give up on the power of bacon, and I am willing to continue eating this tasty breakfast delight in order to continue the experiment - what do you think?

Out of the subway and into the garden of eden...

This post has been inspired by a recent comic posted on my wall in response to my blog (see right). Subway is quick,easy and fairly healthy, so it's a decent option for a student during exams, but this cartoon captures it all when it comes to their cheese arrangement style. For some this cheese arrangement leads to unnecessary dairy overlap (as stated in the cartoon), but for others (like myself) who love cheese, it leads to areas of no cheese whatsoever! Every sandwich should be equally satisfying with every bite, which means having each topping evenly distributed throughout the sandwich. I went to subway the other night, and watched angrily as the guy lazily threw the cheese slices across my turkey sandwich leaving open spaces everywhere!! Obviously it's fast food, but does this mean leaving out all effort in the sandwich making process?? When I sat down to eat my sandwich I was reminded of subway's biggest flaw - the sandwich cut. When I was younger and was first introduced to subway, they would cut off the entire top leaving a valley for toppings - this often lead to a very uniform spread. Now in order to make the process slightly faster (and as well due to laziness of humans), they only make a half cut. When closing the sandwich, this leads to (again) unequal distribution of toppings!! As you can tell this is something that seriously grinds my gears. Half of my sandwich is just lettuce coated with mustard and mayonnaise and bread, while the other side has turkey and cheese. This forces me to take apart my sandwich and basically remake it myself in order to have a sandwich that is mediocre at best. Seriously, when it comes to this, what is the point of paying $7.50 for them to make you a sandwich, when essentially it had bad cheese distribution, and you have to make the sandwich yourself anyways? Not to mention the fact that I leave out most other vegetables due to the fact they've been sitting out all day and that the tomatoes are often discoloured.

For a much better experience when in need of a quick sandwich, I suggest going to Eden on Parc. The sandwich is made right in front of you with vegetables that actually look fresh, and the bread they make it on is delicious (I suggest the baguette if you are feeling really hungry, or an onion bun). The tuna at this place is to die for, unlike subway's which frankly just looks nauseating. You'll find the freshest ingredients and a perfectly uniform distribution of toppings. This place is sure to satisfy and for at a price comparable to subway's, why not go?

Quick! Before the rabbit disappears down its rabbit hole

Easter just passed, meaning one thing is flashing through the minds of the female population: GET MINI EGGS. Girls seem to have a great obsession with these candy-coated chocolate treats that show up at their Depanneur every Easter, and soon disappear as we move into Summer. This year I was bombarded with facebook updates by deranged mini-egg loving girls changing their status to welcome their favourite candy. I, for one did not understand the craze. Mini Eggs are good, but after about one small package I'm pretty well satisfied until next Easter, that was until I tried Micro Mini Eggs. Cadbury has come out with a new, slightly smaller mini egg, which I found to have the perfect ratio of chocolate to candy coating. I downed a fairly large bag in less than an hour and although I wasn't feeling top-notch after, I can hardly wait until I get myself another bag. Easter is over and all the stores are trying to sell all their leftover candy, so I suggest you make a move to the closest candy providing store, and purchase yourself 10+ bags of micro mini eggs (you'll need a stash for exams).

I would move to America just for their cereal selection

Why is it that whenever I am in Florida my breakfast experience is so much better than it is while in my homeland, Canada? Well firstly, and most importantly this is due to the superior cereals in the USA, namely Corn Pops. Yes we have them in Canada, but they are extremely different!! American corn pops are closer to "popped corn", they are denser and full of flavour, while Canadian Corn Pops are full of air, and have little to no flavour. Perhaps this is because Canadians are more health-conscious than Americans and Canada has more restrictions on sugar content etc on their cereals. This healthier cereal could explain why it doesn't taste as good. When looking this up I was surprised to find that one cup of American Corn Pops has 110 calories, 110 milligrams of sodium, 40 milligrams of potassium, and 26 grams of carbohydrates compared to one cup of Canadian Corn Pops, which contains 130 calories, 200 milligrams of sodium, 35 milligrams of potassium, and 32 grams of carbohydrates. The fat, cholesterol, and protein content is the same. So Canadian Corn Pops have more calories AND more sodium. Even when it comes to health I find myself reaching for the American Corn Pops, so why is it that I have to wait until my next trip down South to get a box?Due to the "preferences" of Canadians, Kelloggs continues to distribute the Canadian version of Corn Pops. Is it my fellow Canadians that are keeping the deliciousness of Corn Pops out of my reach?


American Corn Pops



Canadian Corn Pops

Maybe If They Change The Name They'd Be Good

Over Christmas my parents/family friends were talking about a friend's recent visit to Paradiso, a Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Oakville. The food is fairly good, and the atmosphere isn't too bad either, definitely not one of my go-to's but it's a decent choice for dinner. This friend of my parent's had a very different experience at Paradiso than anyone I've heard from. When the food arrived for the group of four, a plate was put down in front of a lady and a COCKROACH crawled out!!! The staff were SO sorry that they refunded her meal ONLY - the rest of the table paid for theirs. That's gotta be good for business.

Colborne Street Cafe's Demise

Yesterday my cousin and I decided to go for a walk in downtown Oakville. It was warm and sunny, and I had some time to kill before a job interview. I decided it was best if I grabbed a bite to eat before my interview, so we headed to an old favourite, Colborne St. Cafe. A year or two ago, someone had taken over the cafe and changed the name to "Isabella's Pasta Cafe". They had maintained most of the cafe's vibes and kept the same menu so we decided it was still a safe bet, despite it's hollow and uninviting new name.

Upon walking through the door we saw that there had been a number of changes. Similar decor but in replacement of the modest glass bakery shelf, which held just a small, but delicious selection of Dufflet pastries, they had put a giant cafeteria-like vat full of pasta. The pasta didn't look bad, but old pasta? Who wants that. The Lasagna was clearly getting crusty on top (if you know what I mean) and it just ruined the homey vibe that Colborne once had, now it just reminded me of the McGill cafeteria - not even close to a compliment.

We looked up at the menu, and although it had been revamped (again making the restaurant look worse), they still had our all-time favourite the Grilled Vegetable and Feta. The lineup was quite long, but thinking Colborne was the Oakville hot-spot we remembered, we figured this was standard, and it'd be worth it. When it was our turn to order, we asked for the Vegetable & Feta. The 16 year old behind the sneeze-guard scrambled around for a few minutes and came back to tell us they were all out of pitas. All out of pitas? The Grilled Vegetable and Feta is and has been for numerous years Colborne's most popular sandwich. It's a Monday!! You should not be out of pitas. A few moments of despair passed as we tried to figure out what we could order (we couldn't walk out after waiting in that long lineup), fortunately another girl popped up holding pitas!

Now this sandwich really doesn't take much; put the vegetables on the pita, put the feta on top and grill it. Anyone with an IQ above 10 could get it done in less than 3 minutes. Apparently the combined IQ of the three people behind the counter could not finish this in 10! It was the most disorganized display of sandwich-making I've ever seen. Colborne had a team of professionals there a few years ago consisting of an adorable red-head, who I believe went by Phee, the previous owner and a team of friendly, and hard-working students. As a regular a few years ago, they remembered my order and they always put in the small amount of effort needed to make each sandwich amazing (it really didn't take much). None of the old staff was there anymore, B had been replaced by some Oakville-mom-look-alike putting on some charming act, and the team of students - likely just there to make some money because their parents won't buy them their third Xbox. Instead of taking orders and completing them, one would take orders, pass it on to a co-worker, who would then pass it back to them when after a few minutes came to the realization that they didn't even know how to make it, and then maybe your order would begin preparation. This is when Kiri and I realized that the long lineup was not due to popularity but a deficiency in quality service. I watched as one of the girls put the vegetables on the pita, lazily spreading it to cover about half of the pita, then putting only a limited amount of feta on, which barely covered the vegetables she had put on. I'm really not one to pipe in, so I just hoped that it would be evened out while on the grill.

When after an eternity of waiting, our sandwiches came off the grill and it was unanimous when we asked for our sandwich to go. Paying too much for our sandwiches, we walked out and found a park bench to sit on. We sat quietly eating our sandwich.
At least I didn't set myself up expecting much. Of course there were bites without feta, and even more disappointing, bites that were solely pita. We sat there in disappointment for a few minutes before I had to head to an interview. Isabella's is definitely not a place we were going to return. The name change really did mean something, this was no longer the sandwich place we could rely on that Colborne always was.

Later last night I felt my inspiration for this post. A wave of nausea came across me - and although it is unlikely due to my lunch, I easily attributed it to the bad experience I had there today.
My cousin and I can say for sure that we will not be returning to Isabella's Pasta Cafe. For the future, I recommend hitting up Boffo's, a fine-food deli that has re-opened on Kerr St. They have the best Chicken Cutlet sandwich I've ever had, and guaranteed not to give you any food poisoning!!

Genesis

So I've started a blog. Is this considered "cool" or "hip"? "Bloggers" are popping up all over the world. This trend is not cool, it's merely another annoyance, or a way for people to pretend that they are intellectual. At this point, I'm probably the farthest I can be from what is cool-I'm a follower, I'm another one of those losers polluting cyberspace with their bullshit.
This is only the beginning.
Enjoy