MISS MOOX: dinner

I went out to dig up some carrots to have with our dinner on New Years Day.
(They are keeping quite nicely under the maple leaves and I had to laugh...one carrot fed us for dinner!)
That crazy carrot had me smiling as I peeled the monster because...
I just plain love the color
ORANGE.

It's really no secret...
Orange boat size of small Volkswagen strapped to small Volkswagen.

I've been having the urge to paint something orange.
A room...Something?
It's been so dreary here...and cold.
You'll be happy to know the bathroom FEELS ten degrees warmer now!

Then I really had to laugh.
I think orange is going to my head.
My new glasses: black on the outside - orange on the inside.

New cheery fabric for panels above our bed,with a splash of sun!

If I could find one...

... I would drive one.

Don't you just love seeing the world through orange colored glasses?

Attention all barbecue fans: It looks like the former home of The Keg has got a new lease on life. Hickory Smokehouse and Grill is set to open its doors on south Albert Street in November. This will be a sister location to the original in Moose Jaw.

Stay tuned. . . .

Yesterday, I got to thinking about something that, contrary to natural expectation, filled me with such an amount of joy that I was pumping my fist in the air as I ran down a country road. I felt almost like I was flying off the ground.

God has been doing a tremendous amount in my life lately. I don't even know how to explain it. It's like he's broken in, finally, and I'm loving him and enjoying life in him and being filled to the point of bursting by the Holy Spirit. I've had more joy, more closeness to God, more wonder, more breakthrough, more healing, more realization of truth than I think I have ever, ever had in my life before. And all of it came about as a result of the most horrific breakup I could possibly have imagined.

I don't even know how to explain it. The only thing that comes closest to describing it is that magnificent verse in Romans 8, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

That's the only thing that can describe it. God took what was possibly the worst thing that could ever have happened to me, humanly speaking, and somehow has turned it into the absolute best thing that could ever have possibly happened to me, divinely speaking.

I was utterly devastated by the breakup. It wasn't simply a breakup but a betrayal of the highest order. I felt like a nuclear bomb had gone off in my insides, leaving everything flattened, decimated, and destroyed. I felt that renewal would never come. I remember thinking as I lay on my friend's couch, in the darkness of her apartment, "I will never be the same again. This will change me forever."

And it has. But not in the way that I expected. In the manner of a volcano spilling lava and ash all over a landscape, and leaving it in the interim devastated but ultimately enriching the soil so that life forms grow and thrive there that never would have before, God has brought more good out of this incident than I would ever have dreamed possible.

Two days after the ultimate ending, when in hatred he spoke the words that broke off even the possibility of a friendship forever, I went for a walk. I didn't intend to speak with God. I was angry as I could possibly be, I felt hopeless, and I was certain that nothing I did, no matter what it was, would change the situation. Certainly talking to God wouldn't. He was the one who'd put me in this mess, and he wasn't about to get me out of it. I was as desperate as I'd ever been. I was convinced this was the end.

But God met with me. I can't even explain it. In an intangible yet utterly tangible way, in an indescribable, un-understandable, thoroughly mysterious way, such that I didn't even know what was going on but knew only that it was God, he met with me. I felt his presence. I was healed. I walked away having forgiven. I walked away understanding. I walked away able to love the person who'd hurt me the most.

And more than that, I walked away with God.

I have "known God" for a long time. I knew I was a Christian. I knew I was God's child. I knew even, in a distant sort of way, that he loved me. Yet life's disappointments had shut me up to him. I was enclosed within walls and fortresses, and his loving presence was not allowed inside to touch me and to heal. I was too afraid. I'd been betrayed too often. I had too thick a shell, too stubborn a will, to ever yield. Even to love.

As years went by, I despaired. I had prophecies and words spoken of God's love for me, of the purpose he had for my life. I believed somehow that it was true, but if so, why didn't it come to pass? Why did I go to church week after week and remain unchanged? Why did I harden my heart in the message or against prophecies that I knew were spoken directly to me, persuading me to yield? Why did I go weeks, months, years without reading my Bible, without praying, without talking to God except in angry, hopeless desperation? Why did I cry when I was alone, asking him with all my heart to let me die? When was his promise going to happen?

And this. It seemed like the ultimate betrayal, the ultimate trick played on me by a God who was determined to make me suffer. My life had been one long record of suffering, and this one thing, the thing that finally seemed like some good, had turned bitter and sour. It was as if you'd bitten into the sweetest chocolate and found it ridden with the most deadly poison.

But it wasn't. The poison gave way to the healing medicine of God's touch. I had no choice, in that circumstance, but to turn to God. He was literally all I had left. Finally, he got me to the point where even my supremely stubborn will and hardened heart had to give way. I had no other choice. It would have eaten me alive.

And my heart has been set free. I surrendered to God, finally. Laid everything down. Gave myself to him heart and soul. Gave up. Gave in. Allowed him to do what he'd been longing to do for all those years: take me over. And it has been the sweetest thing that I have ever experienced, and my heart is free. I have known his touch, his presence, his voice, and his love in ways that I have never known them in my life before in these last few weeks. I have a renewed thirst and hunger for him, seeking him in prayer, reading his word. I have discovered him to be sweeter than anything on this earth. And I want more.

And not just that. It's spilled over to other people. Last night I had dinner with a co-worker and he bared his heart to me about his recent divorce and how he'd been seeking God. Today, he was in church. His heart was touched and tears spilled down his cheeks as he received prayer. He gave me a hug and thanked me for inviting him. I know he'll be back. And all of that is because, if God hadn't done what he's done in my life, I couldn't have reached out to another.

The preacher in church today told us that our mission is to bless everybody around us. Everybody in our city, everybody in our region. And for that, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And I can testify to the truth of that.

I'm loving God. I'm loving other people. For the first time in my life, I'm loving myself. And I'm free. I'm totally free. The thought that made me pump my fist in the air as I was running, was that absolutely nothing in my life has been permanent. I have shifted around so much, moved so much, changed jobs so much, lost relationships, been hurt by other people—all to teach me the glorious truth that made me so happy: all I need is God. He is enough for me. Nothing on this earth lasts, nothing is reliable, but he is faithful. He is permanent. He will never leave me or forsake me. And his love is the greatest thing I can possibly possess.

I used to never understand the end of Romans 8. It says:

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:
'For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom. 8:35-39)

For a long time I judged God's love in my life by my circumstances. If I was suffering, surely God did not love me. Now, for the first time, I understand these words. God's love is greater. God's love is greater than my circumstances. It triumphs over any earthly reality, even persecution, suffering, and death. If I have that, I can actually go through anything. It's real. It's great. And it's believable. He is all that I want.

I'm loving this. And for the first time, I make no apologies about being so blatantly "Christian" on my blog. I want everyone else to know this, too. Because if God's done it for me, who was so bitter, so hurting, and so closed against him for so long, he can do it for anyone.

Even you.

The Round-up:

• Food - 3.5 out of 5
• Service - 3.5 out of 5
• Decor - 4 out of 5
• Overall - 11 out of 15

Let's start with the good: Tangerine is a tastefully decorated bistro that has added a healthy dose of personality to the strip of shops on 14th Avenue between Lorne and Cornwall streets. The restaurant seems to be doing a very good business over the lunch hour. Ladies who lunch, business folks, and university kids are all common sights.
Service is very fast - as it should be at a bistro that depends on the lunch hour to survive. My meals have arrived within minutes of ordering during both of my lunchtime visits. Considering that ordering is done cafeteria-style, that is up at the counter, there is no reason for service to be slow.
The menu, written in chalk on a large wall next to the deli case, has a good mixture of proteins, grains and greens, and it changes often. Tangerine also brews coffee and serves up homemade biscuits and sweets. All of this lends an urbane feel to the place - Tangerine would fit right in to New York's Lower East Side or Vancouver's West End. But it's all ours and we should be proud to have it.
As for the not-so-good: Tangerine needs to work on portions and prices. The other day I ordered the $11 Greens and Proteins: a six- or seven-ounce piece of salmon atop a bed of greens with a light dressing. The dish's modest size left me feeling hungry, and that I'd paid too much. Consider that Siam Thai restaurant downtown offers an all-you-can-eat lunch buffet for $9; or that La Bodega serves a mean sandwich with fries for about $12.
As for the salad, I have a strong suspicion that the lettuce mixture I ate was store-bought. This is a bit of a shame in the middle of summer when fresh local produce is everywhere.
Finally, Tangerine could play more heavily on the "food bar" theme that it uses as part of its name. At the moment, the restaurant is open until 7 p.m. on weeknights. But give the place a liquor licence, dim the lights, put on some groovy music, and you could have a very cool evening hangout. Of course, this may come as Tangerine matures. Owner/chef Aimee Schulhauser is wise to take a "walk before you run" approach to the place.
The verdict: give Tangerine a try for your next business lunch, or if you happen to be hanging around downtown on a gorgeous summer day.

Get your tickets now for the PEAK OF THE MARKET gala dinner on August 15 at Cultivate restaurant in Saskatoon.
Top local chefs will pair wines by Saskatchewan's own Living Sky Winery with a seven-course meal using the freshest food that Saskatoon Farmers' Market has to offer. There's no time like summer for a meal like this. Where: Saskatoon Farmers' MarketWhen: August 15, 2010Cost: $95/personReservations: Call 306-881-1933

On Wednesday, I expressed some disappointment that the former Cafe Orange (now going by the name Orange Izakaya) reopened a month ago but hadn't served any food yet.

Lucky me, Orange rolled out its lunch menu today. It looks like a mix of fairly traditional Japanese and Korean dishes (mainly Korean). This is somewhat interesting because izakaya means "pub" in Japanese. Typically an izakaya serves small plates of Japanese food. Some compare it to Spanish tapas (in terms of size, not flavour).

That being said, I look forward to tasting what the new Orange has to offer.

Word has it that a full dinner menu will be up and running next week.

It's amazing how lonely it is possible to be even in the middle of a friendly community; how possible it is to outwardly belong to a group and yet not find anyone whose "innerness" corresponds to yours.

I've lived here in the States for almost a year, and I have yet to find anyone whom I would consider a real friend. I don't mean a friend with whom you get together once in a while for coffee or dinner; or the casual group with whom you spend at least one evening a week; or the people you see every Sunday at church. I mean a real friend, the kind you can tell anything to, the kind you can call at anytime, the kind who never tires of your presence or you of theirs, the kind with whom you feel completely comfortable being yourself.

I have a few old friends, more or less approaching that description, with whom I talk regularly on the phone. But such is not a substitute for proximity: the companionship I crave.

Not long ago I tried mentioning this to an acquaintance, one of the "hang-out" crowd. "You know what I've noticed here," I began. "People are really social, but there don't seem to be many deep relationships."

He was all over me in an instant. "What do you mean? I have no idea what you're talking about." I mumbled a retraction and gave up.

But I do think it is partly down to American culture. It seems to be characterized by shallow relationships and few deep roots. People in many other cultures value friendship, the true knowing of another. They're willing to take time to develop it. Here, at least in my experience, people value social interaction over substance.

My church is very social. Most Sunday afternoons, I'm with a group for lunch. At least two evenings a week, I can count on my calendar being filled by some celebration or get-together. But I still don't feel like I know any of these people. Witty banter, laughter, and gentle ribbing are as deep as it gets. We hold each other at arms' length, and if there is anything going on beneath the surface, none of us reveals it.

I know part of it is me. A loner and an outsider since childhood, I've always had the sense that I inhabit a hidden world known only to myself. I've only ever met one other inhabitant of that world; it seems like all others are strangers to it and I, a stranger to them and theirs. When meeting people I search them hungrily for clues of citizenship: a cast of face, a turn of speech. But almost always in vain. It's a bit like being stranded in the desert and gasping for water; only in my case, the water is friendship.

I've increasingly accepted it, or at least accepted the fact that it may be the way it is. But I'm feeling lonely, starved for real relationship. It's getting discouraging that in a year I haven't found it and don't feel likely to. I miss the widely multicultural environment of Toronto. And I'm feeling restless, ready to travel the globe again. Maybe I need a vacation. Or maybe, I need just one friend.

The Round-up:

• Food - 3 out of 5
• Decor - 3.5 out of 5
• Service - 3 out of 5
• Overall - 9.5 out of 15

________________________________________________

Several months ago a food-loving group was created on Facebook. Its name was the "Cathedral Village Needs a Cheap Breakfast Place", or something like that. It seems that the Village just hadn't been the same since the Quality Tea Room shut down several years back.

I quickly joined the group, as did several hundred other Regina folks (What did we ever do before Facebook groups became the new face of activism, by the way?).
The Facebook fan page continued to grow, many of its members calling for a cheap plate of hash browns and bacon . . . like now.

Well, some wishes do come true.

The Mercury Cafe and Grill opened its doors in April. The place seemed to spring up overnight on the corner of 13th and Robinson streets in a spot that has housed numerous other restaurants.

The Mercury is a diner, no doubt about that. From the bright red vinyl booths to the formica and chrome tables, stepping into The Mercury is like stepping back 50 or 60 years in time. The Mercury is also under the same ownership as Regina's well-loved Novia Cafe, another all-out diner. This is a good thing -- who better to start a new diner than the folks who run one of the city's oldest and best?

I've been to The Mercury twice now, once for breakfast and once for supper. It's hard to find the right word to describe both experiences. It wasn't fantastic, but it wasn't horrible either. Perhaps satisfactory is the right word.

Weekend breakfast bustles and hustles in The Mercury. If you're not there by 11 on a Sunday, you're going to wait in line for awhile. Granted, The Mercury could easily jam a few more tables into the dining room in order to shave some time off the waiting game.

Your choices for breakfast are classic standbys: bacon and eggs; hash browns; pancakes; an omelette. You get the picture. Now, is it cheap? That depends on your definition of cheap. Most items run around the $8-9 mark, plus the cost of coffee and/or juice. I've had cheaper, but I've also had more expensive.

Service can be a little disorganized, but hopefully the servers work that out amongst themselves as the restaurant irons out the operating wrinkles. We had to wait 30 minutes for any food to hit the table at breakfast, almost enough to push us to the breaking point, but not quite. Fortunately, our waitress took good care of us in the meantime.

Now let's talk about supper for a moment. Once again, there are few surprises on the evening menu. Nachos; chicken wings; chicken fingers; burgers; clubhouse sandwiches; and grilled cheese are a few of the choices.

We ordered up a plate of nachos to get things started. With a $10 price tag, we pictured a nice platter of cheesy chips and veggies. We couldn't have been more wrong. A dinner plate with a puny pile of nachos on it was what we got. Even worse: the scarce bits of cheese on the chips were overcooked and rubbery. Epic fail, my friends. Epic fail.

Next up: the burgers. Now this is where the action is at. Tender homemade beef patties are smooshed between fresh buns with all the fixins. I went for the Mushroom Swiss. Big Willie had The Mercury Burger (two patties with fried onions, mushrooms, shaved ham, Swiss and cheddar cheese). All burgers come with a side. We went for the french fries and they were done to perfection.

Big Poppa (my dad) went for the open-faced Hot Turkey Sandwich . . . which came with hot chicken, oddly enough. But he got past that.

All in all, The Mercury offers up decent food in a comfortable room. The motto seems to be: come as you are, eat what you will. Now if they'd only fine-tune the nachos and up the portion size for most of the breakfast menu, we might have a sure-fire winner on our hands.

(no website)

Beer Bros' bustling brewpub hosts a five-course wild game dinner on May 18. Wildlife writer/photographer Duane Radford will join diners as research for an article on the joys of pairing food with beer . . . a tough job but somebody has to do it.

Tickets are $55 plus taxes and tip. Dinner gets underway at 7 p.m.

Kudos to Beer Bros for yet another unique concept.

So I've moved. Again. The third time in ten months, and the fifth in the past seven years (not to count various nomadic wanderings betweentimes). That's not a lot, compared to how often many people move, but a move always leaves you feeling displaced. There are a thousand little adjustments, like a pot being vigorously stirred and slowly settling down again. Everything stops, but nothing's in its original place. That's how I feel right now—still in the settling stage.

But the place is quite a bit cheaper than the previous and it feels a lot more my own, as much as any place can do which you're inhabiting temporarily. I have a sense of freedom and autonomy that I didn't where I was before, and to me that's priceless. I'd put up with a lot of loss of physical comfort for that intangible necessity any day.

The landlady is easy-going, undemanding, and non-controlling. She's a dear older lady who goes to the Unitarian church, which led to an interesting discussion on Sunday (when they had a "non-Easter" celebration). She understands that I believe Jesus is the Son of God and rose from the dead, though she doesn't share that belief. She was interested in visiting my church one day; Unitarians view all faiths as equal, so it would likely be considered educational. Talking to her was an instruction in what Unitarians believe (or don't believe; the answer is everything and nothing, with tolerance for all, in theory).

And there's a kitty, a dear elderly thing who makes the place a home, meows rustily, regularly pukes up her dinner, and consents to have her head rubbed when she is feeling tolerably safe.

So life has seemed just a little too hectic and out of control recently, with moving; a viral sickness which has contributed a low-grade misery (and, one day last week, a day spent entirely in bed feeling like I'd been hit by a truck); and too many freelance work committments to perform in the spare time I have. Life is a conundrum: I'm ridiculously un-busy at work, and ridiculously busy outside of it. I wish I could somehow switch those two realities.

My blog is not exactly a "personal diary", and I try to avoid musings upon my personal affairs except when they might entertain or instruct somebody. But I don't really have anything else going through the brain right now.

Just adjusting. Some more.

Do you want to see something really cute?

Sandy from "521 Lake Street" had an Easter Spoolie Swap.
I was paired with Joyce from "Scrap For Joy".
She created this darling Spoolie.
It is perched high atop a vintage Jello mold.
I just love it, Joyce!

Joyce is an amazingly creative lady.
She made this adorable swag.
I love the tiny creatures she so artfully crafted.
Thank you, my sweet new friend!

Do you see what I see?
Polka dots a plenty...
Joyce gave me two of the cutest little egg cups.
I just love them!

Bunny Express with a truck load of fresh carrots...
Could they be from Mr. McGregor's Garden?

Tea Time at Chenille Cottage

Bunny Hugs...

The Red Hutch all decked out for Spring.
My grandmother passed her Desert Rose dishes on to me.
I have many memories of Easter dinner at her house as a girl.
I miss her so much!





Dearest Joyce,
Thank you for this darling keepsake.
It is so sweet and will grace my kitchen this Spring.
I love every thoughtful gesture and each lovely gift.
In the coming weeks I will be sharing all of your red pretties, too.
I am thankful to have gained a dear new friend.

I'm so happy you stopped, my dear blogging family and friends.

Blessings to each one of you
and a Happy Spring!

Carolynn xoxo

"For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.
The flowers appear on the earth;
the time of the singing of birds is come
and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

The fig tree putteth forth her green figs,
and the vines with the tender grapes give a good smell.
Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away."
Song of Solomon 2:11-13
I'm linking with these lovely blogs...

*Sunday:
Sunny Simple Life
www.sunnysimplelife.blogspot.com
Seasonal Sunday
www.thetablescaper.blogspot.com
*Monday:
The Dedicate House
www.thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com
The Little Red House
www.dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com
Boogie Board Cottage
www.boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com
Etsy Cottage Style
www.etsycottagestyle.blogspot.com
*Tuesday:
Knick Of Time
www.knickoftimeinteriors.blogspot.com
Rose Chintz Cottage
www.sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com
Lavender Garden Cottage
www.lavendergardencottage.blogspot.com
Tuesdays at Our Home
www.mariaelenasdecor.blogspot.com
Coastal Charm
www.linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com
Budget Decorating Party
www.creativecaincabin.com
Friends Sharing Tea
www.bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com
A Stroll Thru Life
www.astrollthrulife.net
You're Gonna Love It
www.kathywithane.com
Cozy Little House
www.cozylittlehouse.com
Tuesdays The Scoop
www.cedarhill-ranch.com
*Wednesday:
Lavender Garden Cottage
www.lavendergardencottage.blogspot.com
Rose Chintz Cottage
www.sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com
Sue Loves Cherries
www.suelovescherries.blogspot.com
Blissful Whites Wednesday
www.timewashed.com
Open House Party
www.nominimalisthere.blogspot.com
A Sheltering Tree
www.ourshelteringtree.blogspot.com
Whatever You Want Wednesday
www.freeprettythingsforyou.com
*Thursday:
Have A Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
www.jannolson.blogspot.com
A Delightsome Life
www.blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com
The Thrift Groove
www.thethriftygroove.blogspot.com
Bernideen's Open House
www.bernideensteatimeblog.blogspot.com
Faith Grace Crafts
www.faithgracecrafts.blogspot.com
Little Homestead On The Hill
www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com
*Friday:
Rooted In Thyme
www.rootedinthyme.blogspot.com
Country Whites Weekend
www.thecountryfarmhome.blogspot.com
Thrifty Things Friday
www.thethriftygroove.blogspot.com
Lady Bird Ln
www.ladybirdln.com
The Charm of Home
www.thecharmofhome.blogspot.com
Friday Favorite Features
www.foxhollowcottage.com
My Turn For Us
www.myturnforus.com
Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop
www.deborahjeansdandelionhouse.blogspot.com
Anything Blue Friday
www.thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com
I Gotta Create
www.igottacreate.blogspot.com
Common Ground
www.debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com
*Saturday:
Mockingbird Hill Cottage
www.mockingbirdhillcottage.com
Show-Licious Saturday's
www.sew-licious.blogspot .com

.

All images taken with my iPhone via Instagram

This weekend we had friends visiting, who after staying the night on Saturday, dragged (gently persuaded!) us back into London with them on Sunday to go to the Monocle Country Fayre where I bought my new favourite purchase - top left. I wish I had bought a whole set of these beautiful mugs, but as I could only stretch to one, it's being used on my desk, housing surplus pens. We then parted ways so Bill & I had a pre-birthday celebration in the pub for his birthday later this week; just the two of us, a couple of roast dinners and some great chats. I hope you all had wonderful weekends.