hurc has left the nest
It's done. 2 weeks ago, I finally moved out of my parents. I've already started at my new job in Ottawa and have an appartment lined up that I'm moving into in September. In the meantime, I've rented a room from a friend of Gravy's (thx dude). So I don't really have my own space yet, where I can start buying furnitute and stuff.
The last few weeks have just flown by... The last week at my previous company... My first week in Ottawa where I'm looking for a place... My first week at the new company... I've driven back home every weekend since, so I haven't really had the chance to get home sick.
But I will say this: I do miss the home cooking. I've had so much junk food in the past 2 weeks, eaten at so many burger joints, I don't think you could name any major chain that I haven't already had: McD's, Wendy's, Burger King, Harvey's, Taco Bell, KFC, Quizno's... the list goes on. I'm kinda waiting for my own place before I start cooking for myself. A. bought me a cookbook for Chinese cuisine, complete with full color pictures! :P
I'm currently using J.'s old laptop, which is more than functional for internet stuff, but still horribly slow. So I gave in last week and bought myself another computer. zibalatz pointed out this great site for computers and computer parts, called Cancomputer.com. So I got myself a nice flat panel (yeah man, the 19" 4ms 1400:1 one) and an Intel Duo CPU desktop with 2GB of RAM. I haven't received it yet, but I probably won't be bringing back to Ottawa until I get my appartment anyway. Haven't really decided what I want to install on the PC yet. Any suggestions? The easiest is obviously XP Pro, but I'm considering 2003 Server, and not sure if I should try Vista Beta 2, or even Linux.
Oh, anyone recognize the bird above? have you guys seen the Pixar short For The Birds? It played right before Monsters Inc and it's definitely my favorite animated short. For years, I've been looking for a plush toy of the little birds. I know one definitely exists. Pixar held some animation/rendering contest where the prize was a plushie toy equipped with a squeaker! Alas, none were available for retail, and I haven't even seen it on eBay. If anyone finds it, my birthday is coming up you know...
posted by hurc @ 7:33 p.m.
13 Comments:
Two weeks of eating fast food? man... One of the first things I had to buy was a rice cooker. There are so many easy to cook meals at the supermarket - but I guess if you don't have your own kitchen...
If you're ready to "learn" how to cook, check out the ATK (America's Test Kitchen) books. They don't have pictures, but they explain why you need certain ingredients in certain dishes/recipes, and explain why they recommend one brand of oil over another etc.
For quick stuff I like the donna hay book my sis got for me :) And of course, just experiment - you'll get the hang of some things after a while.
every day my biggest headache is what to eat...
it's easy to do the fast food thing but i HATE fast food. i crave it once or twice a year
some days it's a matter of work-out vs cooking - no time to do both, choose one. and then there are days i go home so late i'm famished, i over-buy groceries at the supermarket (causing me to waste a large amount of food i won't have a chance to cook before they go bad) or i buy not-so-healthy nuts & chips to hold me over while grocery shopping - ruining my appetite by the time i get home.
food is definitely one of my daily headaches. that's what i miss most, mom & dad's home cooking.
btw CONGRATS on being on your own.
Hey Hurc! I'm happy to report that I haven't eaten at any of the fast food chains since moving to Ottawa (except for Tim Horton's). Although I work long hours, it's a relaxing break for me to make dinner. It's nice to learn how to make a fast and good meal, to know where your food comes from, to use fresh ingredients.
One of the things that really inspired me was to subscribe to Gourmet magazine (they have a section called meals in 30 min or less). www.chatelaine.com also has great easy recipes. An invaluable countertop friend is a Crock-Pot. I make all kinds of soups, stews, and other dishes in there. I come home from work to a house full of yummy smells and instant dinner.
Of course, once my exam is over in 2 more months, I will definitely be throwing more dinners at my place. And you are always welcome to drop by (maybe we can have a regular supper club with G and S) for dinner. I make a mean rack of baby back ribs! Anytime, just gimme a call!
hey hurc, are you interested in my hamilton beach foreman grill? I barely use it. I'm not a huge fan.
Ahh... how I live a spoiled life. I usually do my groceries the day of since the supermarket, japanese food store, fruit store, bakery and dairy queen are literally across the street from my house :) So no spoiled food in my fridge - if anything, its always "oh, we're out of ___". "ok, I'll be back in 5..."
Seriously though - 30mins is too long. How elaborate do dishes have to be for everyday? Since its summer I like fresh fruits & veggies -just chop and serve. Toss a salad, be creative. For pasta dishes, once its cooked, just toss in ground beef or leftovers, and sauce. Takes max 15mins. Want more veggies? Boil some broccoli with the pasta, it breaks down and gives it some wonderful flavour. I love frozen veggies too, toss 'em into the fry pan with some corn starch, boom, stiry fry. Frozen spinach, toss it into the microwave, add soysauce and crushed seasame seeds. Those korean side dishes are so quick to make and deelicious...
Everything doesn't have to be fresh. Like I said, frozen veggies are quick, there are mixed cans of tuna available for mixing with pasta, you can get pre marinated chicken, fish, brochettes. Frozen pastry sheets, canned veggies, salad in a bag heck, frozen fries...
Just spent the weekend in Mtl. I miss that place so much too! Living in the Atwater market, I was spoiled with fresh bread, grain fed meat, fruits and veggies from either the market (if I didn't mind splurgint) or the Super C. I tried never to freeze meat so that I could always buy fresh. I'd buy food maybe 3-4 times per week like they do in Europe. Now, I'm lucky if I can do groceries once a week. There is nowhere within walking of where I'm living. I can't even find a post office without driving! How spoiled I was back home!
Gravy is so right: The key is to prepare your own meals and not eat processed crap.
These are all fine suggestions but I think what Andrew really needs is a really hot girlfriend to cook him meals.
Am I the only one curious about the new computer and monitor he bought? Details!
zibby, you're making a pretty tall order there.
1)hurc meeting a girl
2)hurc meeting a hot girl
3)girl interested in hurc
4)girl and hurc getting to level where she can be at his house comfortably/or invite him into her home without fear
5)girl able to cook
6)girl able to cook chinese
7)girl able to eat chinese regularly
8)girl able to cook to hurc's mom's standards
If I were hurc I'd be happy to get to stage 3.
what the...
there are at least 3 steps there that aren't even true.
what? the last three? So, have you met any pretty ladies? 'becca recently commented that women in Mtl are hotter.
Excuse me! Who says this hot girlfriend will even cook him meals? You know what's hot to a woman? A man who can cook well. Oh yeah, baby!
deviline, I'm working on it. :P
the point was that he needs to find someone to cook for him since it seems he doesn't.
whats even more fun is someone who you can cook WITH. someone who knows what to do without you telling them.
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