Saturday night sillies and lemon coconut meltaways

Fact: I have four new gray hairs I've accumulated from the stress of my past week.

Auditions are tough.  If you're a dancer, singer, actor or performer, you'll know what I'm talking about. It's one thing to pursue a career in the arts but it's another thing to actually be successful in it.  You learn a lot from it, nevertheless.  The audition process can either go in your favour (very rare) or you can be left with a big fat NO (99% of the time).  You really build a thick skin and you have to tell yourself that it's not that you're bad at what you do (though it really seems like that at the time), it's just the personal preference of who you're auditioning for.  You could be too tall or too short, too thick or too thin.  You could have blonde hair and blue eyes and they'll be looking for someone with darker features.  These are all things you can't change about yourself so the only thing you can say to maintain optimism is that this wasn't the place you were meant to be.  Wouldn't you want to be somewhere where you can be appreciated for who you are anyways?

I have two auditions coming up this week, one of which I am lucky enough to travel to Oslo, Norway for!  I'm very excited because in what seems like less than a year, I've gone from having not been on a plane since I was thirteen, to having been on and off a plane four times.  I love travelling to new places and I love getting a feel for culture that is unlike what I am used to.  I also love Europe and am particularly fond of the Scandinavian countries, having been to Denmark earlier this year.  Oslo is neck and neck with Tokyo to be the world's most expensive cities (danger!!!!) but thankfully I'm only there for two days.

Joining me on my adventure is this one:

DAWGGG

Isabelle will be coming from Amsterdam and meeting me on Oslo.  We'll be going back to Toronto the same day but because I booked my flight after her, I wasn't able to get the same ticket as her without passing up on an extraordinary deal.  But fate is a funny thing.  My flight home leaves at 6:35 am (kill me now) and I have a 5 hour layover in Amsterdam (hey, at least it was cheap).  Isabelle leaves Oslo at 9:35 am and she has a layover in Amsterdam as well. It didn't even occur to me until yesterday as I was in line waiting to buy a lemon at Superfresh that there was a reason why I had to wait in the Amsterdam airport for 5 hours.  Lo and behold, we're flying on the same flight back to Toronto from Amsterdam and I could not be happier!  

So last night as we were booking a hostel in Oslo, we got distracted and made a delicious recipe I found on Pinterest for LEMON COCONUT MELTAWAYS from Addicted to Veggies. 

Here is some documentation of our baking:

This looked like we were cooking crystal meth.  Don't be alarmed. It's just sea salt.

The fact that there is an alligator sticker on this lemon makes me 99% suspicious.

Fun, fun and even more fun

Voila!

I must say, this was probably the most satisfying dessert I've had in a while.  Baking at the lowest temperature with the oven open a crack really does give it the crispy outer layer but instantaneous, melt-in-your-mouth bite.  We virtually ate the whole bowl that night.  Definitely will be repeating this recipe!  

And finally, a little film of the process and of us, just being goofballs.

Naturally, I put the alligator lemon sticker on my forehead. 

Pleasantly yours,

Bart

Melody Mondays: Bedouin Soundclash

This is a song that when I started listening to it recently I couldn't help but think that I've heard it before.  Truthfully, I may have heard it long ago but I'll really never be able to say for sure.  This is a Canadian band from Toronto and it's quite possible I'm the last to hear about them and this song because they've been active since around 2001 (You might know the songs "Elongo", "Walls Fall Down" and "When the Night Feels my Song").  Their music is the sort you'd find yourself listening to while bike riding on a sunny morning, across the pier.  The air is fresh, especially because it's early enough that there is little noise polluting your surroundings.  It's pretty fantastic.

This particular song is one I'd describe with a different vibe.  I close my eyes and like to imagine myself at a bar or at a friend's party where I don't know anybody and I make an instant connection from across the room with someone.  Some call it a 'spark'.  

Brutal Hearts, the song is called.  And I can't stop listening to it.  

Pleasantly yours,

Bart  

Welcoming 2015

I had a nice night.

My two best friends came into the city and we went to the most amazing restaurant called House-Maison.  We ordered copious amounts of incredible food.  If I was a food critic, I would give this place five stars, but I'm not a food critic so take my rating as you will.  

cute, right?

I'll enlighten you with the food we ordered so that you can salivate:  house baked brioche, roast pear and frisee, roast cauliflower with mint and lemon zest, roasted brussel sprouts, fish and chips, and bread and butter pudding for dessert.  

I tried to steal a balloon on my way out but I got caught.

After that, we made our way to a house party for the countdown.  Good food and good company. Couldn't have asked for a better night.

Earlier that day I made a list of goals for this upcoming year of 2015.  I'm not really a "New Years resolution" kind of person.  It's hard to pick just one thing that is usually kind of impossible to upkeep anyways.  I used to do resolutions like cut out sugar or avoid swearing, but in the long run, I wouldn't last.  So I like to think of little things that I can work on improving about myself.

The last one is kind of a joke.  But in all seriousness, I get eye infections like every other week. So yeah. They need to stop. 

#noeyeinfections2015

Pleasantly yours,

Bart