R.I.P. Dear Versa and Of Perils of Winter Driving

"Winnipeg has already plowed through close to half of its annual snow-clearing budget after last month's heavy snowfall.

This morning, city officials revealed it cost Winnipeg about $11 million to clear snow from city streets in January - nearly twice as much as the $6 million they originally budgeted for."



Well apart from the budget casualty, one of our two cars fell prey to winter driving this year. Alex was just coming out of the back lane one morning in January, flanked by two massive snow banks on either side, following a night of light snowfall when POW! This minor snowfall had as usual obliterated all evidence of curbs, ruts and street markings and Alex was taking Tara to daycare in a bit of a rush when he got T-boned (side impact collision) by a rather large pick up truck. Neither of them saw the other coming, the truck was large, white and camoflaged amidst the freshly fallen snow and Alex's Nissan Versa was shorter than the 8 foot tall snowbanks.

"It was POP! and then we kind of swooped and I was dizzy"



This is very similar to what Alex's car looked like except it was bashed in on both sides  by the truck and a hydro pole. Actuall this is fairly familiar site that you pass by on winter mornings, thanking your lucky stars that it wasn't you today.



That is how Tara describes the collision, three airbags went off and the only injury was a broken middle finger for T. The Nissan however, we could tell, was history. Our insurance adjuster calculated that it would be $15K to fix our dearly departed (It had only cost us $14K to buy new...). The two driver side doors were crushed from the impact, three airbags had deployed, side mirrors smashed, and the car had been turned and pushed into a electric pole and the large snowbank on the opposite curb, collapsing the passenger side quarter panel as well as the front fender... only thing untouched on the outside was the hatch and the roof! We knew before the car was towed away that that was the last ride in it for Alex.

the Versa at the Manitoba Insurance "graveyard"

I actually saw this happen as I drove up 45 seconds behind Alex, not realizing it was them till I saw Alex scamper out of the car... that should tell you how high the snow banks were.

I hear my dad saw 5 cars in ditches that evening on his way back from work. If we could sue the city for damages I would consider a class action suit for all the car crashes. This happens every year and after every fresh snow fall around the city. The plows clear the streets and pile the snow on curbsides making visibility at crossings impossible!! Now a month later, I am still driving blind at intersections, on severly snow-rutted roads that seem to push the cars towards each other in an inexorable collision course. However, as a result of the car crash, we now own a bigger (higher) and brighter (red) vehicle with four wheel drive. I cannot say enough good things about side impact airbags and carseats though: they kept the daddy and daughter safe - which we are all thankful for. The new RAV4 is supposed to be our answer to our winter reality. This is why Winnipeggers are cross every January-February... the wonder of winter wears off with the twelve days of Christmas to be replaced by snowy-slippery-rutted roads to be follwed by slushy, gravelly, icy, pot-holey, mucky roads of March. If you go off on a holiday to escape the winter doldrums, you often come home to your car moated and buried under snow and a slew of parking ban tickets.... grrr.

Notice the yellow ticket sticking out for the overnight parking ban and that grey snow is hard-as-rock stuff and heavy to boot, heart attacks are not uncommon from trying to manually clear this concrete like snow.

 

Good luck to any pedestrian trying to walk home from the bus stop, on the street with next to nothing visibility.


O, can you tell that I hate Spring! And as if that is not enough, the snow ploughing on the sidewalks is everybody's last priority forcing pedestrians down onto the slippery streets. Motorists hate it because they are sometimes unable to control their vehicles due to the snow ruts and the black ice that forms on the roads from the tires compressing and polishing the snow at every intersection... and when all this now is gone we'll have a fresh crop of potholes to deal with in April. JOY.

Busy, Festive, October

Our two kids are getting older... the little one, following in the footsteps of her big sis has developed a "juto" (shoe) love. It's usually the first word out of her mouth in the morning... as she reaches for her shoes on the change table while I change her soaky diaper. She has several pairs, but the bigger the shoes, the more she lusts after them. (Dad beware!) In fact, every morning while we head out the door, she insists on getting her big sister into the appropriate footwear and then screeches as she is left behind with dida. They are becoming quite the unit, which is why this year I decided to dress them as related characters for Halloween. T wanted to be the Big Bad Wolf, so K naturally became Little Red Riding Hood, I tried to convince the dad to be the Woodcutter but he declined, since I wasn't going as the Grandmother. Technically, at 36 I could be a real grandmother, but I shudder at the thought of @##ning a child at 17 who goes on to repeat the deed! But, I digress (terrible sentence structure, I know darling). Since we knew what the kids were going to be for Halloween I serched for a costume for about three weeks, gave up and then made my own. Everyone loved the long braids on K, but I tried them around the house too, silly mum.





K the Little Red Ridinghood and T the Big Bad Wolf

And as usual, I have jumped ahead to the end of the month, of course October began with pent-up rain fall, new garbage collection rules (and associate woes) and the Thanks Giving (TG) long weekend, which we Canadians celebrate well before the US one. Confusing, I know. Canada is not the 51st American state in all things after all. We had two TG dinners, one with Bengali Kosha Patha'r Mangsho (Goat Curry) and one with roast chicken, stuffing and all. T was really enthusiastic about helping in the kitchen, for about 5 minutes because Bubble Guppies were on at the same time on TV. She however made sure that I had included brussel sprouts on the menu (!).

sitting down to the second Thanks Giving dinner

The Pathar Mangsho (Goat Curry) was a modified version of this recipe from the Bong Mom's Cookbook who reminded me of our similar tradition of eating goat curry on sunday afternoons when I was a kid growing up in India. Also the goat was going to be the last meat my parents were allowed to eat before the prelude to Durga Puja, Mahalaya, happened. Since my dad was officiating again this year at the only proper Winnipeg Durga Pujo, he was off being a proper Brahmon for the duration.

Three sets of unrelated Chakraborty-s performing the Pujo, what are the odds?



At the 2012 Sarbojanin Durga Puja, Winnipeg



We (Alex, I, T and K) headed out and attended as much as our kids and jobs allowed but I think my parents had a blast everynight. I had some home-made Sandesh at the puja and loved it so much that I came back home and reproduced it the next weekend for Lakkhi Pujo. By all accounts it was great but I didn't make near enough. Monday morning when I left for work, there were about a dozen on a plate, by the evening there were two left, of course no one remembers eating them. All this cultural cooking has my husband worried, he hasn't seen a steak in months, I remind myself of the beef recall to assuage my guilt. I even made him a mint-chocolate cake this weekend (he'll tell you HE baked himself a cake, I just iced it) to make up for all this sudden onset of Bengali-ness, but that just has him worried about my sudden domestic enthusiasm. I blame it all on having to sew those costumes... creativity spawns creativity. It's a vicious cycle but I will draw the line at knitting.

Sunday Morning Waffles - guest post from Fragmentals

Since I have been talking of family and food lately, I thought I had to post this, especially for my bong side of the family. Sunday morning waffles are a bit of a tradition at our house now, established post baby with a recipe Alex found in his Grandmother's old and faded cookbook. Alex has adapted the recipe to serve the two and a half of us and to make it a tiny bit healthier. The original recipe bases portioning on the assumption that one requires a 5000 calorie (!) diet, probably from the days of trudging uphill to church (uphill, both ways). Our biggest challenge to making this tradition stick is to get Alex out of bed. It is usually a concerted and protracted effort by the girls and me resulting in a lot of bargaining, cajoling, tickling and guilting.



T in her apron


Alex must have recorded one such Sunday morning because what he reproduced in his "stream of consciousness" post at his blog, FRAGMENTALS, is brilliantly accurate and therefore hilarious. I have guest-posted his blog entry below followed by the actual recipe. The really hilarious part is that I have trouble telling myself apart from the kids in the scene below.

 

The waffle iron has a permanent home on the red tile trivet, we never seem to put it away except for pictures


 Sunday Morning Waffles - The Reprise - A Stream of Consciousness Conversation


What time is it?

I don't know

It's time to get up.

No it isn't.

Come on, I'm hungry.

I'm tired.

Dad!!

The kid's are up. The sun is up. Make some breakfast.

You make breakfast!

Daaad! Make breakfast!!

Fine. Do you want cereal?

Waffles! Waffles! Waffles!

Do we have bacon?

Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!

I think so. You'll have to check.

Why don't you check!?

Dad! Don't be grouchy!

Fine. Help me up and go to the kitchen.



We need a measuring cup...that's a drinking cup, we need a measuring cup...No a measuring...I'll get it. This is a measuring cup. Get the bowl. The plastic one. Good, now hold it.

I wanted to!

You get the flour.

I wanted to get the flour!

Fine, you take the bowl, and you get the flour. Don't spill it. Careful, grab it by the...no don't!...Get the broom. How much is left? Let me see...There's enough, we only need two cups.

Can I scoop it?

I'll do it.

Why can't I?

You're holding the bowl. How about I scoop and you pour it in?

But I wanted to do that!

You pour the first cup, and you can pour the second. One...Two...Good...Now sweep up the floor please...The floor...I'll do it. Get the salt. Stop! Don't pour it in, we only need half a teaspoon. And a teaspoon and a half of baking powder. No not baking soda, the powder...in the can not the carton. Good.

What's it taste like.

Like powder.

Can I try some?

Uh...Sure.

Hey! Don't let her eat that!

It tastes funny.

Oh yeah?

Did you find the bacon yet?

I haven't even looked, we just started. Okay 2 cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1-1/2 teaspoons of baking powder, and now 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.

I'll get it!

No don't! The lid's not...on...Sweep it up please. There should be enough left in the jar. Fill up the teaspoon. Good, now put it in.

I wanted to do that!

You dumped most of the cinnamon on the floor! Clean it up.

Mom!

Your Dad said clean it up. I don't think we have any bacon. Do we have sausages?

I don't know. Can you get a cup of water and a cup of milk and pour them in? I need a big spoon.

I have to wash my hands.

Fine, can you do it after you clean the floor?

Sure.

I'm still holding the bowl!

Good, give it here. Get two eggs, the whisk, and another bowl.

Here's the water and the milk.

Good, pour it in. Carefully, not on my...It's ok just a little spilled. Stir the rest in until everything is smooth.

Dad how do I do the eggs?

Crack them on the bowl. Now pull out the shells... We need to separate the yolks. Like this.

Ewww!!!

Look Dad, I'm stirring!

Good, now stir in these yolks.

Ewww!!!

Take a fork and whip the egg whites until they're stiff.

Ha, ha. You said stiff.

Not funny girls. Stir a little more slowly, don't spill.

Are the sausages ready?

What sausages dear?

I asked you for sausages.

You what? When?...I didn't...I think we have some bacon, just wait. Is the dog outside?

Yes, he's barking.

Let him in please.

My arm hurts.

I'll finish the egg whites, you get a teaspoon of vanilla and two teaspoons of apple sauce.

Okay now what?

Put them in.

Why do we use applesauce?

It replaces the oil.

Why?

It just does.

The dog's barking at the neighbors.

Then let him in! Can you get the bacon out of the fridge?

Fine. Come. Inside. Now. Come, come on...he's not coming.

Come! Inside! Now! Good boy.

I think I'll shower.

Good idea, pass me the frying pan, I found the bacon. How many pieces?

3!

6!

5!

All of it!

Two each then. The egg whites are done, fold them in and take out the waffle iron. I'll do the bacon.

I want to!

Okay just lay them out in the pan and use the spatter shield. Turn the element to medium.

Can I watch T.V.?

What? Who? You? Yeah, go ahead.

Yea!

I'm helping you Dad!

That's great, thank-you. Is the waffle iron hot?

I need to plug it in.

Fine do that. Can you set the table too please?

Can I watch T.V.?

Sure. Tell your mother I'm making coffee. Do you want syrup or jam or what for the waffles?

Sure

All of them?

Sure

Butter and syrup then. Okay get out of here I'll let you know when everything's done.

Is it ready yet?

I thought you were showering?

I was, I am, I mean...I'm going to. How come no-one's helping you?

They did. How come you're not showering?

Fine I'm going. Give me a kiss.

Is breakfast ready?

It's just started cooking. Why aren't you two watching T.V.?

There's nothing on.

Yeah, nothing.

Set the table then.


And now the recipe... if you paid attention, you could almost find it in that post above.


Sunday Morning (A Waffle Recipe)


2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup water

1 cup milk

2 eggs

2 tablespoons apple sauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract.


Using a large spoon mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the milk and water. Stir until the mixture has a creamy consistency. Separate the egg whites. Add the yolks and the apple sauce to the mixture. Mix well. Whisk the egg yolks until they are stiff. Fold them into the rest of the mixture.

Heat the waffle iron until it sizzles as you coat it with a small amount of butter. This will prevent the waffle from sticking. Pour the waffle mix into the waffle iron until it is about 3/4 full. Cook until golden brown. This mix should produce 4-5 waffles 8" in diameter.    

Fragmentals is the writing blog of Alex Jackson. Fragmental is a geological term for pieces of rock found where they shouldn't usually be found. They are incomplete and do not blend in with the typical formations. These writing fragments are just that.



Alex feeding K



Chronicles of the TO trip

I had perhaps put on record my recollections of our summer trip to TO, NJ and NY before they melt away...


Gord and Nadine’s Wedding prompted this trip to the Canadian and American Megapolis-es. Gord is Alex’s BFF, regardless of less than auspicious beginnings (that is Alex’s story to tell) and he had stood in as Alex’s Best man during our wedding and this would be Alex’s turn to do the pretty. However we were travelling with two children (one infant) and it escapes me why we decided to take the LO (little one) with us. She had three pieces of luggage all by herself and the rest of us three had two! When we arrived at the Toronto airport was when I first appreciated how good the Winnipeg airport was: child friendly, clearly labelled, free baggage carts, helpful airport security folk... Toronto airport must have made a bad impression on me because I still haven’t been able to shake off my hate on Toronto and I LIKE big cities!



We arrived in the middle of a heat wave with two children, a pile of luggage, limited smart phone access and all the stress of being the spouse of someone in a wedding party. Alex wasn’t much use other than being decorative (he is that) regarding the wedding. Inspite of the children being very well behaved the logistics of getting to the ceremony alone with two kids was pretty challenging and kept me awake at nights. Gord and Nadine had us over for the rehearsal BBQ at their place the evening before the wedding and we met some of Alex’s school friends the next day for brunch. Erin O’ came to our rescue and offered to help out with the transportation to the ceremony. Now the wedding was on a Boat on Canada Day along with myriad other harbour-front activities making finding parking a serious challenge. As it happens we were 10 minutes late getting to the boat, we had warned against it, but we got lost! Of course the bride and groom having anticipated such things had actually asked their guests to arrive earlier (unbeknownst to us!!) so nobody missed the boat. The wedding itself was one of the more entertaining weddings I’ve been to, complete with a fun and choreographed first dance. The couple got well wishes from passing boats including the Pride party boat. Tara had couple of girls to play with and do art with and she literally danced till she dropped. Alex and I probably got one dance late in the evening, on the top deck after the air had cooled down but in retrospect it was a great wedding. We had to carry Tara back a 20 minute walk and then cab it back to the hotel... that was a long day.

Canada or US, which country would you rather live in?

I read this article today, probably written by a Canadian, that got me thinking of my thankfulness for having made a great life-choice and opting to go to Canada for my post secondary education as opposed to the US as most Indian middle class kids do. Here is an excerpt from the article -

Canadians receive better social benefits such as healthcare, paid maternity leave and greater subsidization of their post-secondary schools. Both countries generally have around the same annual income. However, the cost of living in the United States is remarkably less. While Canadians may pay less for larger-life events, Americans pay less for day-to-day expenses such as eating and housing costs. Maybe it all evens out in the end, or perhaps one place really is better to live than the other.

When I made that choice, some thirteen years ago, I was not thinking of settling in this cold and obscure country. Little did I know about its universal health care or care about maternity benifits. Back home if you got sick, you hoped you had a connection to get into a hospital on time and had enough money to pay for it and with maternity leave, one got 3 months unpaid leave with no job security. Frankly I was healthy, young and far from family minded. The only thing that stood in my mind back then was the reputation that the US of A had for racial discrimination, riots, profiling, ghettos. I chose Canada because the university degree was cheaper beyond compare (especially for a middle class foreign student) and I felt I was less likely to be marginalised due to my colour.

Turns out that I made a choice wiser than I could have hoped for. I arrived in a very generous country, greeted at the airport by an ex-Pakistani family(!). I have since stopped marvelling at bus drivers that smile and greet you when you get on and friends that are welcoming, down-to-earth, and more often than not, a mixed racial group.

Five years ago, my husband and I were at a McCormick and Schmick's in Denver, CO. I remember noting that I must have have been the olny coloured patron at that restaurant, barring the servers who were all visible minority. This experience was repeated in Minneapolis which I used to think was more like Canada than US. I am not sure what my friends and former classmates from India, that chose to settle in the US, have to say to that. All the ones I have met have seemed fairly prosperous and happy. But since those trips to Denver and Minneapolis I have had a couple of kids. Starting a family is an expensive time in people's lives, you have baby stuff to buy, one parent is about to lose their income and then there are the associated medical costs. How we would managed had we lived in the States, I cannot fathom. Here the pre-natal care, delivery, post natal care, vaccinations all cost me nothing out of pocket. Or I should say nothing more than my income tax of 30% marginal rate. (Apologies for not having any idea what people earning the same as I do pay in the States). Knowing we would not be left with scary hospital bills post-baby helped us start a family.

Then two years back my parents moved to Canada and from the day they arrived they were covered for health care much to their surprise, and eligible for old age security in ten years.

It makes me think of the Mastercard commercial:

Two children - $0, one professional post graduate degree - $8,000 (actually got a $20,000.0 university grant for that so was ahead by $12K when I left), dad's heart surgery that I was on the hook for - $0. Zero discrimination (you guessd it) - Priceless!.

I can safely say that I have saved enough money to buy my 4 bedroom house outright (in theory).

This is not to say Canada is perfect, for one there is no recognition for foreign credentials, so don't be surprised if you find a dentist trained in Egypt running the hygenists mini autoclave for a job. Or a Philipino architect working as a technician. Then there is the political apathy, and yes, every consumer good costs about 20% to 30% extra no matter if the dollar is at par. I do love the fabulous cities of the US, built on cheap immigrant labour (even immigrants here make the legal minimum wage (unless they work in the publishing industry)), and yes, I will be heading south of the 49th to buy some cheap winter tires and perhaps some clothing. But I will always be glad to call Canada home.