New Beginnings

I’m a mover and a shaker. This is not exactly a virtue all of the time. I like trying new things, going new places and having new beginnings. I love new beginnings. This may be attributed to how I was brought up. We moved constantly.

Seriously, I went to four different schools between kindergarten and grade five. I was born in Westlock, then we lived in Athabasca, then Lac La Biche, then Red Deer (we had one move there), then Edmonton, then Worsley (where we moved twice and I took kindergarten and started grade one), then Olds (three different houses and grades one to the start of three), then to Peace River. Oh Peace River… with my parents I lived in three different homes. When I moved out I had five homes with roommates and one just my boyfriend, at the time, and I.

My itchy feet followed me to Edmonton. In the twelve years I have lived in here, with a short two-home move in Drumheller around year seven, I have had nine homes. I would have to sit down with both of my parents and a note pad to properly calculate the number of moves we have made together and then add the moves I have made on my own to get a proper total. I am so tired of moving; however, I do very much enjoy the new beginning that comes with each new home. The packing and unpacking is fun at first. I always manage to get rid of a few things and reorganize everything as I unpack.

You would think I had become a pro at throwing away stuff I don’t use or need anymore and that I am now one amazing packer. This is not so. I became very good at packing stuff hastily and storing it in Rubbermaid bins. Horrid, I know. During my time at the Bonnie Doon place I have managed, with the help of my roommate Danica, to part with a fair about of junk that has been living in the bins while being moved and restored. At first it was difficult, now it has become liberating. Each time I give a book, a kitchen tool or an item of clothing away or take a full box to Goodwill I feel a little lighter. I guess I have been holding on to a lot of things thinking that one-day, when I finally settle down I will prepared. Really all of that stuff has been weighing me down, making that final new beginning harder to reach.

Nik, my partner, and I have just leased a new condo in Spruce Grove. We are currently living in a basement suit in a house in Bonnie Doon that was built in the late sixties. It is charming little place, but it is old and hasn’t been treated so well by the many renters that have lived there over the years. There are some pros, such as the beautiful earth-tone dyed and poured concrete floor in the kitchen and living area, the wonderful neighbourhood full of great friends, the big back yard, the bus that stops right out front and takes me straight to work and the new upstairs tenants who are friends of Danica. The cons have outweighed those charms, excluding the friend who I will miss having so close. For the most part we are moving because it is easier on both of us for Nik to be closer to the shop he sub-contracts out of. There are other reasons though, the old tenants smoked and had a big smelly dog. I can’t get over the smell that still lingers. It’s a basement, albeit there are large windows, it is just not sunny enough. The kitchen is small and old. Most of all, we need a fresh start that is just ours and ours together.

The kitchen is big deal for us. Our relationship was built around food and feeding each other. We have learnt so much about each other and ourselves by puttering together chopping, washing, cooking, baking and creating in the kitchen. I realized I was falling in love with Nik while he moving between the stove and the sink. He was creating something fantastic that likely contained his favorite seasoning, Vegeta. We decided where and how we want to build our future together in the kitchen while cooking and chatting. It became clear that we needed a bigger kitchen to hold us over for a while, as it is where we create most of our quality time. The condo has a large corner kitchen with tones of storage and counter space. I am in heaven just sitting here typing.

This is intended to be our last move before we build our sustainable dream home somewhere in the country and settle there for good. I wonder how that will sit with me five years in. How will I quench my thirst for new beginnings? Will I be rearranging furniture every six months, uprooting and remodeling the indoor greenhouse? Maybe I will be one of those geeks suggesting my husband and I renew our vows every few years. Then I will insist we move all of our stuff into a C-can to then move back into our home as a new beginning, a fresh start. I hope I have the self-control to let the greenhouse be, at least. Any which way, I am certain Nik and I will be able to find all the new beginnings we desire for us and for our family. For now, I look forward to the future and pour a glass of wine to enjoy before crawling in next to Nik on the chilly air mattress for our first night together in our new home.



Keep It Simple Sweetheart Marinade

This Marinade goes great on any meat and is super easy to whip up. We use it mostly on venison a lot.

Ingredients:

2 tbs Olive oil
2 tsp Vegeta
1-2 crushed or finely chopped garlic cloves
Juice from half a lemon, (1-2 tbls)
Pepper to your liking (fresh ground is best)

If cooking venison, beef or pork give the meat a few hefty taps with a meat-mallet on both sides. Take care not to flatten it. Think of it as fluffing the meat.

Place all the ingredients a bowl large enough to stir two eight ounce steaks, or other meat, in. If you have a Tupperware marinade container use that. Lightly toss the meat in the bowl taking care that they get completely covered in the marinade. Leave the meat for at least 20 minutes before cooking them on a pre-heated barbeque, indoor grill or frying pan. Flip once half way through desired cooking time. For Chicken cook all the way through, for good quality beef, pork or duck cook to your liking.

Tips: Beef of Venison steaks cook best when placed on the grill at room temperature.
Add chopped basil to give a summery taste.
Put goat cheese or feta on top of the meat after flipping it.
Let meat stand for 5-10 minutes before cutting into it.