Photo credit: Urban Mixer on Flickr

A contact asked me to support an online publication in Vancouver called Granville Online. I checked it out, to see if it was something I’d want to recommend to my readers – and indeed it is very cool, featuring many Vancouver restaurants that I love.

“From Japanese and Indian to Chinese and West Coast fusion, the Vancouver food scene boasts the best of international cuisines in Canada, offering plenty of vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options as well,” reads GO’s food/dining section.

It’s true. We have so many great restaurants here, and I love going out to them during the holiday season. And at any time of year, even when I’m trying to be frugal and eat at home every day!

We’ve entered a time of food. I have two big food-related house parties coming up on Saturday. I love food at restaurants and food at house parties – mmm! I’m feeling festive and excited for treats. Then, in the New Year, I’ll start doing all those healthy things like riding my spinning bike in my home office while watching documentaries and listening to podcasts. I will lift weights, eat less treats, drink more water and less coffee… oh my!

A gateway to Vancouver Island: Departure Bay, Nanaimo, B.C.

I put this question out on Twitter yesterday and was grateful for the suggestions I received.

Following a tip from @boutiquemac and @HiredGuns – we visited Mon Petit Choux Bakery & Cafe at 120 Commercial Street (at Wharf) in Nanaimo.

And it was great.

Tasty drinks, good food, Bob Marley playing on the stereo, and a comfortable, open space with big windows and a nice view.

For some reason, on a whim, I decided to try a London Fog for the first time.

The cafe we visited in Nanaimo today after consulting with the Twitterverse

I ordered a hot London Fog for myself and an iced one for my son.

We also split an order of French toast and it was a nice touch that the waitress asked the kitchen staff to put it on two plates for us. It was, as the waitress described it, like a bread pudding style, rich and tasty.

We have one more day, and plan to check out Bocca on Fitzwilliam or Serious Coffee on Commerical, suggested by @rcthink – and @amandabrittain has me curious about Modern Cafe near the convention centre. “Best mac and cheese ever!”

We saw this boutiquemac sign right beside Mon Petit Choux, so I stopped in to say thanks to whomever tweeted the suggestion. Turns out it was Jason, who came out from the back to say hi.

It’s always interesting to see the face behind the tweet – and so cool to be able to get advice on good cafes when you’re in another town. The Twitter community comes through again FTW!

Here in this photo is Dave Dawson playing music with our neighbour friends at our housing co-op in East Vancouver. We share a lot of meals outside during the season of good weather. Too many times I’ve been inside at my computer, listening to the laughter of my neighbours outside, in the distance.

But in the past few days I’ve been outside with all the people – not in here at my computer. When I have been inside, I’ve been working at my paid job on a cool new blog I’m about to launch.

Multi-family dinners

The kids all play together, with older ones looking out for the smaller ones. A dad comes around the corner just in time to help break up a playfight-turned angry between the 10-year-old boys who are getting tired after a long day. They are getting so big and strong, and as the mom, it’s exhausting to keep breaking up these play fights – half-playing, half-angry.

The young adult men are laughing at them in a reminiscing way. A little later I see one of the young men teaching them fighting moves.

Eventually the boys collapse in a hammock. Everyone has overeaten. Lots to tidy up. Not much time for blogging.

The party goes ahead despite the rain at Italian Day on Commercial Drive in Vancouver.

Dancing in the rain with umbrellas at Italian Day on Commercial Drive June 6, 2010

The smell of garlic and Italian sausage was luring people into line-ups. So was the gelati. We saw a pasta eating contest, from a distance. It was hard to get a close-up look because so many people were cheering and chanting for the contestants.

My heart went out to the vendors, trying to keep their treasures dry, and to the restauranteers whose extended dining patios (some with red and white checkered tablecloths) were getting soaked. The cafes and many shops were full of people looking for shelter from the rain, which came down hard at a couple of points.

Italian Day party on Commercial Drive in Vancouver

Overall people seemed to be having a good time, though I overheard one woman complaining to her companion: “I think we made a big mistake coming here in the rain.” Too bad for her eh? I’m glad I checked it out, in any case.

I’ll be off-line for a few days, so take care. I’ll be back soon with your daily dose of gentle weirdness. xo

Tiny parachutes ready for take-off

A layer of white fluff covers the ground outside my house in East Vancouver

Wind dispersal of seeds

Known in some circles as “Prince in Pauper’s Clothing” or “Piss in Bed,” the dandelion releases its seeds into the air. Perhaps it has a sexy aspect, if you think about it, but I’ll say no more on this PG-13 blog of mine.

I love this botanist-writer’s description of their flight: “Like an endless army of parachutists released from an airplane, seeds and fruits travel the wind currents and gentle breezes of the earth…” (from “Blowing in the Wind: Seed & Fruit Dispersal By Wind.” Wayne’s Word Noteworthy Plants: February 1999.)

Of course, lawn-owners don’t like them, and some people use weed killers. But in response to health concerns, many jurisdictions – Leeds, England, for example – banned some pesticides and are now seeing a proliferation in the dandelion population. Journalist Neil Hudson talked with botanists in Leeds for his story Leeds dandelions plague.

In this Yorkshire Evening Post article, Hudson quotes Amanda Walker, a countryside ranger near Leeds: “The dandelion is a beneficial weed but has a bad reputation. It has been described as a plant which we once knew the use of but have since forgotten.”

The folks at Australia’s “Herbs are Special” website certainly haven’t forgotten the dandelion, which they refer to as a “…valuable herb… revered… throughout history, regarded as one of the very best herbs known for gall, spleen and liver complaints, and one of the safest and most active plant diuretics…”

The website says the dandelion is “rich in calcium, chromium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, selenium, silicon, zinc” and also contains Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, E.

Dandelion flower in full bloom

Perfect timing! My friend Dean just got back to me via Facebook with details on why he eats dandelions.

“they are free! and every where! and their nutritional profile beats anything found in stores. u can eat/ harvest the whole plant,” he says in a Facebook message to me. “the yellow flower has lotsa lecithin which is good for the liver and the brain! the roots make up a great roasted beverage the greens are super for the liver great for anemics n great for bone health (mineralization).”

For more info, Dean recommends this article The Health Benefits of Dandelions

So… should we just start harvesting them and forget about the lawns?

Geoffrey Vincent, program coordinator of The Bicycle Valet, at Trout Lake Farmers Market in Vancouver, Canada on May 22, 2010

Geoffrey is program coordinator for The Bicycle Valet, run by Better Environmentally Sound Transportation (BEST). This three-year-old program encourages sustainable transportation and all things green by making it easier for families, sports fans, and concert-goers to ride bicycles to events.

The bike parking lot at Trout Lake Farmers Market

Many people in Vancouver used The Bicycle Valet during the Olympics, including Vancouver blogger LeftCoastMama who wrote a great post about her family’s experience parking their bikes.

Taming traffic tension on residential streets

Many people from other neighbourhoods drive to the market, which isn’t the best idea for them or for us neighbours. The parking crunch is even tighter than it’s been in previous years – or at least that’s how it seems to me.

Up til this year, the market was in the west parking lot, closest to Trout Lake Community Centre. But it had to be relocated to the north parking lot this year because the community centre building is being replaced, as I mentioned in this post: What’s up with the Trout Lake Community Centre?

Now people can park their vehicles in the lot by the community centre, just off Victoria Drive, where the market usually is. That’s where Volunteer Michelle is directing market-going motorists – steering them away from the streets beside the new market location.

Volunteer Michelle directs drivers away from Lakewood Drive and 13th Avenue

It was pretty funny to watch drivers ignoring the parking signs and getting called on it right away. On my way home from the market, on foot, I chatted with a different parking lot volunteer (not Michelle, in the photo) who had to keep telling people to move their cars. Once every three minutes, a different driver pulled up, hesitated, and then parked right beside the No Parking sign. The polite parking volunteer approached each car and asked the driver to move – and most of them said: “But I just want to run in for a second!”

Driver ignores the Road Closed sign on Lakewood Drive by the Trout Lake Farmers Market

Cars towed from Lakewood Bridge

Drivers take note: save yourself a big hassle and towing bill!

Do not park on Lakewood Bridge (north of 12th Avenue) when you go to Trout Lake market on Saturdays.

Vehicles were towed from the Lakewood Bridge, which will be an annoying surprise for people returning after the market. The City of Vancouver contracts Busters Towing and the towing fee for cars and light trucks is $70.18 + GST – not to mention whatever violation fees are charged. Doh!

Laying out the tasty wares at Fujiya

Anyways! I was out running errands when suddenly I got a weird feeling in my stomach – an empty, sort of gurgling feeling… Aha! Hunger. In response, I thought to myself: “I should eat something.”

So I went to Fujiya at 912 Clark Drive (at Venables) and picked up a pack of Yam Tempura Roll for $3.50. Now I’ve got it here, at home, and I’m trying to eat it while I write this post – without spilling any on my computer. I guess I could have finished eating first, but whatever.

You can go into the store and grab some sushi to go – or maybe some gyoza, yakisoba, karaage… You can check out their menu online and place an order for pick-up, and they also cater big events. It’s also a food store with all kinds of Japanese ingredients and an excellent Pocky selection.

Well, I don’t have much else to say about it, really. I like Fujiya. The food is good. You should go there if you like Japanese food.