JUNK BOAT TRAVELS

30 March 2025

Monday Mural

I'm linking up at Monday Mural

January 2025 - Van Horn TX

Day 6 Odessa TX to Las Cruces NM

Random murals around town.

29 March 2025

Saturday we truly are not meant to go out on Saturdays. We got ourselves dressed and bundled up for Elbows Up at City Hall. Stepped outside and the wind was whipping about and came back inside! The weather this week is the last kick at the bucket for winter!

They'll be others.

I joined the National Trust of Canada. It cost $74 for a family membership. I have a few places around that I want to visit this summer. I figure at a minimum entrance fee of $10 pp we would easily make our money if we went to 4 places.

John fixed the laundry hamper.

I finished our 2025 Northbound Recap!

Mark Carney has named April 28 as election day. I now have to determine how we can vote as we will be out of the country then.

The Governor General will dissolve parliament tomorrow after Mark Carney visits her to request that she does so. Canadian election rules require federal election campaigns be between 37 and 51 days in length with voting on a Monday (with a few exceptions). That’s plenty IMHO for Canadians to determine who they will vote for and is a fraction of the lengthy tiresome campaigns for an American president.

Sunday I had a long telephone conversation with my old friend that is in a retirement home.

I baked a cinnamon raisin loaf using a new recipe. I laughed as I asked John to take something down (I'm only 5 ft tall) from the top kitchen shelf. It was dates that expired in 2016!!! LOL I had bought new dates for when we made date shakes last week!

Since I was using raisins to bake, I thought, why not a raisin shake? Sure enough, it is a "thing", I found plenty of recipes. They were good!

I also made a pot of beef soup with the frozen steak bones and various vegetables.

Monday we had a dusting of snow overnight, March is truly unpredictable.

Just for a contrast it was 36C in Palm Springs today!

Click for lots more on Monday Mural - Indio CA

John got a good head start to collecting and scanning all our tax forms for our new accountant.

After lunch we got ready to go pick up some, not needed immediately, stuff but it was just miserable out, it felt like November, dark and gloomy so we headed back indoors.

Tuesday the plan was to take the CAD cash in hand and the US cash and convert it to Euros. However, we need some cash for the plumber so we may as well wait to go to the bank.

Second plan was to change our phones as the buyback plan expires April 12, however, if we wait until next week it can go onto our next credit card bill, as this month is a big one.

Wednesday we headed out to Burlington to the Royal Botanical Gardens to see Alice in Bloomland.

Tumble down the rabbit hole into “Alice in Bloomland,” a wondrous botanical experience at Royal Botanical Gardens where reality bends and blossoms into a world of curiosity for all ages! Inspired by the pages of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, this floral showcase weaves together the magic of horticulture, the whimsy of floral design, and the marvel of visual arts to create an enchanting indoor wonderland straight out of a dream.

Just a quick overview as I did a full photo dump in another post.

From there we drove to Hamilton for gluten free fish and chips at Hammerhead's, it's been a long time! I don't think we went at all last year. But it sure has gotten pricy. $50 for 2 halibut and chips. But so good! I noticed that they are opening a gluten free bakery next door.

The plumber came at 7, he replaced the gasket in the main bathroom - $150.

Thursday

I headed out to Burlington to meet a friend for some lunch and retail therapy.

We came across this!

I picked up luggage tags and Canada pins for ourselves.

John did a Costco run so we are well stocked up for a while other than fresh produce.

Friday was a bit of this and that. John used the golf simulator. I made some soup and a stew for the weekend, some housework and banking. I watched some Portugal travel videos and studied some Portuguese.

I bought myself a charm for my bracelet.

COOKING

I bought sticky rice at T&T. I made it on Sunday following the package directions, it was good but a little too sticky. I tried again on Monday using this recipe but this produced the same gloopy mess.

The scallops from T&T were not nice, too small and tasteless, I will not buy those again!

Saturday lamb gyros using a new recipe

Sunday braised pork belly, sticky rice and baby bok choy

Monday scallops bok choy and rice

Tuesday Szechuan pork green beans

Wednesday chicken wings

Thursday rotisserie chicken nachos (the rest of the chicken was a lunch, then a stew and soup)

Friday steak, chimichurri, homefries (leftover from fish and chips)

WATCHING

Top Chef is airing its latest series titled Top Chef Destination Canada. This is the twenty-second season of the American reality television series Top Chef. Sneak peak.

On Set of Top Chef.

Season 22 Toronto Premiere.

One of its judges is Canadian, Gail Simmons.

1923 is an American Western drama television series. The series is a prequel to the Paramount Network series Yellowstone and serves as a sequel to the series 1883.

Dark City: The Cleaner is a New Zealand crime fiction television series. By day, Joe is a cleaner at the police station; where no one notices him. But by night he has another line of work – a serial killer who's been dubbed The Christchurch Carver. When another woman is murdered in her own home, police suspect The Carver – but Joe knows it wasn't him. He sets out to find the copycat killer. But as he searches, he finds he is also being hunted – by an adversary who is more clever and more dangerous than he is.

The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel I watched the first episode (I know, late to the game) and enjoyed it so I thought we should watch it together. After her husband leaves her, young mother of two Miriam "Midge" Maisel discovers that she has a talent for stand-up comedy. Could this be her calling?

We watched the original The Day of the Jackal is a 1973 political thriller film. Based on the 1971 novel by Frederick Forsyth, the film is about a professional assassin known only as the "Jackal" who is hired to assassinate French president Charles de Gaulle in the summer of 1963.

Season 3 of Bollywed started on CBC Gem! BOLLYWED is a heartwarming docuseries centred around the Singh family, who have been operating the iconic bridal shop, Chandan Fashion, in Toronto’s Little India for almost 40 years.

BOOKS

It is quite rare for Canada to ban books domestically, outside of wartime. The Criminal Code does prohibit certain kinds of speech, such as hate propaganda and “undue exploitation of sex”. Therefore the publication of any such materials could result in criminal charges.

The Engagement was an okay read with an unexpected twist, full of nasty people.

28 March 2025

Weekend Roundup

Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler

1. Starts with "M"
2. A Favorite
3. MARCH - Chosen by Tom

Starts with M (BIGGEST/SMALLEST/LONGEST/SHORTEST/OLDEST/FIRST)

MURAL first I found in Toronto 1989/1990. Scanned photo.

FAVOURITE

MINIATURE

MARCH

Tucson AZ protest march.

The Craziest Thing I've Seen This Week

March 2025 - Toronto ON

Mind-Blowing Anamorphic Illusions by Patrik Prosko.

Video Nikola Tesla

27 March 2025

Throwback Thursday - Georgian Bay

Another Ontario vacation idea, around Georgian Bay. We went in May during the pandemic, so just ignore those references! There are links within that post that direct you to the detailed daily posts.

It will get crowded in July and August but it was perfect in May.

This Northeast Ontario guide has great information and interactive maps to plan your trip.

We did the following:

Day 1 Toronto to Collingwood We booked a week in a timeshare

Shelburne Coffee Break

Day 2 Meaford ON

Boats

Day 3 Collingwood ON

Murals downtown

Murals downtown 2

Day 4 Owen Sound ON we stayed at Cobble Beach in Kemble overnight

Weekly Recap with more photos and food

26 March 2025

Alice in Bloomland

March 2025 - Toronto ON

We headed out to see the Royal Botanical Garden's Alice in Bloomland. We hadn't been here since 2017 Lego display!

Alice was a stunning display. The botanical experience features 25,000 real orchids blooming in the exhibit – an enchanting dash of colour and a promise of the coming spring, on a cold day!

From the moment that entered the RBG Centre, we were marvelling at the beautiful flowers and the curious plant displays as well as the life-size Alice-inspired pieces. Everyone enjoyed the journey into Alice’s topsy-turvy world where “the ordinary becomes extraordinary” with an exhibit that “fills the season with colour, wonder and a dash of madness”.

THE TEA PARTY!

The Queen of Hearts’ soldiers in the Breezeway

Painting Roses

Eat Me, Drink Me

Of course, the Cheshire Cat!

The White Rabbit's House

Admission to the art exhibit Of Wonders Wild and New by Cobalt Connects is also included with tickets for Alice in Bloomland. This exhibit features nine contemporary fibre artists from around the world who created textile-based art works that explore the broad themes of Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

‘Ode to a Prairie’ by Amanda McCavour