Calgary

  • Starting a Garden Journal

    Pandemic life has me concentrating on my hobbies right now. With the businesses on hold, I have time to work on my hobbies more. It no longer feels like I have to get them done and out of the way so I can tackle the mountain of emails or the unending task list related to running events & photoshoots. It's not that I don't love those things - I definitely do! - it's just that if there had to be a positive outcome in all this, reconnecting with my hobbies is something I'm grateful for. It makes me think long and hard about work/life balance and what I want to…

  • Za’atar

    Like many of you, I’ve been spending a lot of time in the kitchen lately. Pandemic life has me playing with my hobbies again and that’s not a bad thing. Hobbies are saving lives right now, which is great. My friend Stephanie suggested I start a recipe blog, but I promised that if I did it, I’d make sure my recipes weren’t prefaced with pages upon pages of nonsense before you get the instructions. So, here’s my most-requested recipe: za’atar.

  • Seeing the Wolfdogs

    If you are coming to Calgary and are looking for something a little different to do, consider visiting the wolfdogs at Yamnuska Wolf Dog Sanctuary. This beautiful natural space just past Cochrane, AB is a lovely spot to be quiet and observe some truly content animals. I can’t stress enough how much this place embodies the “sanctuary” portion of its name, not just for the animals who live there, but for the people who visit. The Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary houses many adorable wolf / dog mixes. These are animals who were bred as pets, but their owners quickly realized that they couldn’t handle the innate needs of their wolfdogs and…

  • Homemade Cherry Liqueur

    Every summer, I keep a close eye on my mother’s Nanking cherry trees. When the bright red berries have finally soaked up enough sun, I pick the trees clean and either eat them all or force my mother confect them into Nanking jelly. This year, there weren’t many cherries on offer. The trees had been struggling to grow and when I had picked what was suitable, there was only about a cup of cherries in a bowl. The local magpies nattered at me the whole time, clearly claiming ownership of the tree’s fruits, but I’m a people and I wanted them, even if there were only a few. After listening…