Friday five

I think today's post is what you'd call somewhat conceptual. 

Or maybe not.

Anyhoo...

Anytime anyone talks about Muse somebody else is there to mention how many other bands they sound like.

And it's true. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Well today I was listening to Soldier's Poem for the tenth time (as you do) when it struck me that the song reminded me of exactly five other songs.

The first song it sounds like is Can't Help Falling in Love by Elvis. The way it starts, at 0:55, is pretty much a dead ringer for the beginning of The King's classic. But if you don't believe me, take a listen for yourself.

I couldn't help falling in love with Soldier's Poem the very first time I heard it and now I know why.  

E.A.P.

The second song Soldier's Poem sounds like is Everybody Hurts, by R.E.M. I can't pinpoint an exact moment in the song but I'd say the overall melodies are pretty similar. Take a listen.

The third melody Soldier's Poem mimics is Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin's (or to you non-Poles, Frederic Chopin's) Nocturnes. Give it a go from 5 minutes on. Do you hear it or is it just me?

It think it has something to do with the waltz vibe.

Though Soldier's Poem also has a barbershop feel.

But on to the fourth similarly sounding song which is, of course, Ave Maria by Franz Schubert. I say of course because I picked that one out the first time I listened to it, and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one.

Here's my bro Zach Galifianakis singing Ave Maria. Because, as Bradley Cooper says, "he's got the voice of an angel."

If you need to go back to Soldier's Poem to compare I'd say the first sound alike clocks in at around 2:17.

The last and fifth song Soldier's Poem reminds me of is Bohemian Rhapsody, by Queen. You don't hear the similarity as much in the live version, as opposed to the studio one, but "the moment" happens at 2:30.

And here's a little Queen.

It's only fitting since I started off with a King.

Between two ferns

Contrary to what its title implies, this post is not another ode to nature.

It's an ode to Zach Galifianakis. 

Between Two Ferns is the name of an internet comedy series Galifianakis hosts on funnyordie.com, a "comedy video website that combines user-generated content with original, exclusive content." It's called Between Two Ferns because he basically interviews celebrities positioned between two ferns.

Like this.

Some of the funniest, and most popular, interviews Galifianakis has conducted (firmly nestled between two ferns) include ones with Jennifer Aniston and Tila Tequila, Sean Penn, Jon Stewart, Charlize Theron and, as pictured above, Steve Carell. He also interviewed Jon Hamm (ahem) among many others.

Who am I kidding. They're all hilarious!

The reason I decided to write about Galifianakis today, even though I think of this nearly every day and literally laugh out loud...

... is because I came across the coolest story about him and the lovely lady he took to The Hangover III premiere.

Her name is Mimi Haist and she is an 87-year-old woman who is now homeless but used to know Galifianakis when he was a down and out comic who laundered his clothes at the laundromat she volunteered at.

But back to Zach.

I first came across the little bundle of joy (who is often compared to a garden gnome) when I watched The Hangover (way, way, way after it came out) at home in Montreal with my beau.

You know those moments when you catch yourself being really happy. That was one of them.

Since then, I've been a fan of pretty much everything he does.

Including being a philanthrope instead of a misanthrope. 

Word.

The secret garden, part deux

Inspired by nature and unexpectedly left to my own devices, I recently made two recipes: vanilla cupcakes (care of Martha Stewart) and lobster risotto (care of IGA the SAQ).

I say inspired by nature because it seems as though the colours I recently captured in nature inspired me to make similarly-hued culinary delights.

Let me show you what I mean.

We had these beautiful pink buds, almost like cherry blossoms, adorn two trees in the backyard for about two weeks and I was so awed by their beauty (especially set against the bright blue sky and shining sun) that I had to Instagram them.

Subconsciously, I think the colours were painting a picture in my head because not long after I snapped these shots I looked up a long-forgotten Martha Stewart recipe for cupcakes and made them. 

This is how that looked.

In addition to being pretty to look at and easy to make they were also very tasty and I'd like to hone my cupcake-making skills to the point where I could attempt something like a red velvet or London fog.
Mmm. 

But on to the lobster risotto. Like cupcakes, I had never made risotto before. Every time I go to IGA and it's available I pick up Inspired, their free magazine, and usually get inspired by at least one recipe. It started with my new favourite appetizer - olive, basil, clementine and prosciutto (in that order) brochettes - and was quickly followed by another; bacon-topped pea and mint crostinis.

But hold on a sec.

In doing a little on the spot research, also known as rummaging through my recipes while I think about the next thing to write, I noticed that the lobster risotto recipe actually came from Cellier, the free SAQ magazine.

Hmm. I'm detecting another trend here.

I think what inspired me to make the risotto in the first place (other than the fact that I had leftover lobster... poor me!) was another picture I had recently taken of an almost phosphorescent, fern-like (???) plant in the garden.    

The recipe didn't call for them but I added peas and was left with a delicious, nutritious lobster risotto.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!









  

Gatsby the great

"Gatsby? What Gatsby?"

Since watching The Great Gatsby on Sunday I have been in a JG, or Jay Gatsby, induced haze. 

The movie literally left me breathless.

From the lush sets and Prada designed costumes to the Jay-Z driven soundtrack and genius dialogue (F. Scott Fitzgerald's to thank for that one!) there isn't one thing about the movie that I didn't love.

While some people may have been left wondering "What Gatsby?" indeed as Baz Luhrmann only introduces us to the main character incarnated by Leonardo di Caprio well into the movie, I think the suspense achieves the desired effect when Gatsby finally appears on screen - after, of course, we are treated to several fleeting views of his (absolutely gorgeous) pinky ring. 

"And I like large parties. They're so intimate. At small parties there isn't any privacy."

I have always been a fan of the roaring twenties (who are we kidding? I've always been a fan of every decade before my own) but Luhrmann's version of Gatsby's '20s is literally good enough to eat. Old-fashioned champagne coupes and red velvet curtains intermingle with vintage automobiles and pink suits (for men) to create the kind of world I was meant to live in.

A moveable feast. A living, breathing work of art. 

While the reviews seem pretty divided, with people either loving or hating the movie, I really don't understand how you can critique a film for being too beautiful. 

* "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." 

In the end, Luhrmann's version of the book originally penned by Fitzgerald in 1925 makes me want to read it again, which is a testament to the film in its own right. A classic of American literature about the Jazz Age, debauchery, idealism and love, The Great Gatsby remains great, even after all these years.  

* What a great last line! Fitzgerald's I mean, not mine.




 

Saturday six

Yesterday kind of got away from me and to make up for missing the Friday five (two weeks in a row.... sigh), I thought I'd pen the equally list-oriented and cleverly named Saturday six (which, if you look at it, can actually be seen as a bonus, or plus one).

As a member of the David Suzuki Foundation, I regularly get updates from the organization that works to "protect the diversity of nature and our quality of life, now and for the future." This month, I received an e-mail about the 30x30 Nature Challenge which encourages (or rather, challenges) Canadian to spend 30 minutes in nature each day for 30 days starting May 1st.

According to the DSF, the health benefits of spending more time outdoors in nature include reduced anxiety and depression, decreased stress, increased energy and increased immunity, among others. 

It even makes you happier and nicer, says Suzuki.

I had the opportunity of testing this theory out for myself this week as I spent an average of three hours a day outdoors gardening.

You heard me: the citycountry bumpkin has developed a green thumb. And feels happier. (As to whether or not I'm nicer, I assume that's up for discussion.)

While three hours is decidedly more than thirty minutes I can't tell you how different I felt after having my hands in the ground.

The first day was a little hit and miss, logistically, as I had not yet differentiated the perennials from the weeds, but after a while I came to recognize the various plants and flowers growing around our house. Each morning was like Christmas as something new popped out of the ground, budded or better yet; flowered.

Hope you enjoy as much as I did.

 

And a few shots I captured at the end of the week, before stormy weathers hit.

Churro don't know what you're talking about

I thought I couldn't do it.

Make donuts at home, I mean.

But it turns out I can. 

And did.

I wouldn't go as far as calling the process easy, or even quick, but it was definitely satisfying to finally glaze and cool over 24 donuts at 11:45 p.m. Almost as satisfying as enjoying one the next morning with a cup of coffee.

After watching Donut Showdown on Food Network Canada I was tricked into thinking making donuts was a simple task. One that could be accomplished in 30 minutes. It is not.

The recipe I used claimed to taste exactly the same as Krispy Kreme, the ubiquitous (and freakin' delicious) Original Glazed® American doughnut which (supposedly) dates back to a recipe from the 1930s. 

I was aware of the danger involved in heating large quantities of oil at home but I figured that was the only major risk involved. 

Apparently not. 

It seems as though every ingredient needs to be heated to a different temperature (warm water for the yeast - 35 degrees Celsius, lukewarm milk for the batter - how many degrees is "luke"?, hot oil for the frying - 175 degrees Celsius, and so on).

Math is not my strong point and I had a near disaster with the yeast situation but I persevered. And I kneaded. And I timed. And I heated. And I cooled. And so on.

 
In the end, the donuts came out (were they birthed or baked?) quite delicious though not exactly the same as "ye old registered trademark."

Churro gotta love a donut.

Or, if you're in the States, a doughnut.