My Olympic Week!

I am far more of an 'Arts Person' than a' Sports Person'. This could be for several reasons. Firstly, the only sport I was ever good at was...well I was not good at ANY sport. On the flip side, I have two visual Artists, and a musician in my immediate family, and the P-Man's family are ALL musically inclined. So basically, I am far more comfortable if someone wants to sing me a song, or paint my portrait, than I am if someone suggests taking me curling, for example. These facts make what I am about to tell you, all the more incredible. This week...I ATTENDED TWO OLYMPIC CELEBRATORY EVENTS!!! On Tuesday, I actually woke up at 5:15 am, got dressed, and walked down the hill to Marine Drive to watch the Olympic flame pass through White Rock. Yesterday, I took the bus/Canada Line into Vancouver and attended the full dress rehearsal for THE OPENING CEREMONIES OF THE 2010 WINTER OLYMPICS!! What a week!! Even though I don't agree with the politics, and the emphasis on winning, etc, etc...I really enjoyed both events, and feel excited about the next few weeks of Vancouver Olympic craziness. I hope you watch the opening ceremonies on TV tomorrow night. The artistry with which it was put together was remarkable, and made me feel very proud to be Canadian.

So, lest you feel as if you have stumbled into the wrong blog...let me get back to food. After the ceremonies last night, my friend J. and I walked to Yaletown, and had some drinks and snacks at a very nice little New York style lounge called George ( www.georgeloungevancouver ) They had a good selection of food for a lounge, and with 8$ glasses of wine...I will be back! We split 3 things: Short rib potato skins, crab cakes, and a mixed mushroom lasagna. The potato skins were the most forgettable. They tasted like every other potato skin I have had in my life and not a bit of short rib was to be found. J. suggested that perhaps the dark cinnamon colored liquid the skins were resting on, was the short rib component? I say, false advertising...and we have strike one! Next came the crab cakes. They were to have been composed of dungeness and Alaska King crab, and they were DELICIOUS!! Slightly spicy, all crab, no yucky sticky filler, with bits of bell pepper for color, on top of a little drizzle of curry mayonnaise. J. had to eat fast, as I was angling towards her cake. We ordered another glass of wine, and were still a bit hungry, so we ordered the mushroom lasagna. It took awhile to arrive, but when it did, it was well worth it. The piece was nestled in a deep white bowl, smothered in a beautiful scarlet colored, fresh tasting tomato sauce. The pasta was al dente, and the selection of mushrooms was unusual. It was light,and flavourful...and certainly not lounge food. It was getting late, so instead of using our tickets to get us a free ride on transit back to J's place, we found a cab, and I stayed overnight.
I woke up this morning to the lovely smell of J. making blueberry pancakes, with blueberries from her dad's farm. I LOVE pancakes ( my dad made sure of that!) and even though these were a mix, they were light and fluffy. With some real maple syrup poured over top, I ate 3...to give me strength for the long walk to the Canada Line. When I got home...I had to consult my party planning list, and managed to make the dessert, and both main courses, as well as prep for the one salad. I have to get started on supper for the P-Man as well...but I feel that I am organized and ready for Saturday night with THE ITALIANS!