Thursday, August 11, 2011
Thursday, August 4, 2011
adventure. Pickrel for Dinner
haven't posted in a while, sorry. hope this makes up for it..
so many times in summers passed, as we're heading off in a float plane to a remote location on one of Ontario's many beautiful northern lakes, we've been asked, "did you bring your fishing rods?", and the answer has always had to be no, seeing as i didn't even own one.
my wonderful mom decided that should change, and for Christmas this year she got me all set up with a St. Croix collapsible rod with a really nice travelling case, and a fancy re-furbished reel from a friend.
after a visit with said friend to get a little tackle box, some lures that would be perfect for pickrel fishing, some line, and a run down of how the whole thing goes together and how to tie a knot, i was all set (and quite excited) to get out there and catch us some delicious pickrel dinner!!
so, having cought only a handful of fish in the past, and never really having had to hold it, take the hook out, or anything - i was definitely (and perhaps still am) what one would call an ammateur.
we were so excited about the first fish i cought, after only about three casts - and yes i was holding the rod upside down, with the reel on top (how embarassing) - that when my friend manders told me it had teeth so it must be a sleezy pike, i threw it back even though i knew it was a pickrel.. it all just happened so fast!! and i was so disappointed and mad at myself, cause he(/she) was really nice looking, and really big - i'd say > 17".
now, this is the next sucessful catch and he(/she) was a beauty - i say sucessful, because we had some serious difficulties following this effort and between dirty pikes and heavy pickrel, and according to blaine (said friend) my lack of knowing what to do when i'm reeling er in.. oh and a lack of net, this was the last success of the trip.
i'd say he was about 15 or so inches, and very not happy to be in that bucket.
here i am taking the hook out, yes i am wearing a glove, and yes that means i'm a wimp. this is my new Gerber "Bear Grylls" compact multi-tool - purchased soley for the purpose of this endeavour.
fishy was just about as long as our Estwing - Big Blue driller's hammer that we use to bash rocks.. we should have bashed his head to nock him out as it turns out suffocation isn't the best way to kill a fish, but i feel like either way it would have been cruel :(
had to wash off all the dirt, before we got to the cleaning.. belly up! ew.
this isn't quite as bad as my "ew that's gross" face in one of the other pics shot.. i'm about to make the first cut.. this is where a fillet-ing knife would have been handy.
it really wasn't that easy to cut this guy up.
make one cut down the belly, blaine said.. and one down the spine.. easier said than done.. felt like i was disecting a frog, like in 8th grade.
it was quite the struggle, not the best idea to try to take the meat off the skin without a fillet-ing knife.. better to just cook it in the skin, which is what we had to do for half the fish.
manders helped to get it all shaken up in the lemon-sesamee seasoning we got from the mine.
and then we fried 'er up in a little bit of olive oil on our not so working Coleman stove, there was some water in the fuel pipe and we had issues with it the entire trip.
at any rate, the fish was delicious.. some of the best tasting fish i have ever had.
will definitely be fishing more often, especially when on the remote and secluded lakes of northern Ontario - when with good friends and getting the job done!
so many times in summers passed, as we're heading off in a float plane to a remote location on one of Ontario's many beautiful northern lakes, we've been asked, "did you bring your fishing rods?", and the answer has always had to be no, seeing as i didn't even own one.
my wonderful mom decided that should change, and for Christmas this year she got me all set up with a St. Croix collapsible rod with a really nice travelling case, and a fancy re-furbished reel from a friend.
after a visit with said friend to get a little tackle box, some lures that would be perfect for pickrel fishing, some line, and a run down of how the whole thing goes together and how to tie a knot, i was all set (and quite excited) to get out there and catch us some delicious pickrel dinner!!
so, having cought only a handful of fish in the past, and never really having had to hold it, take the hook out, or anything - i was definitely (and perhaps still am) what one would call an ammateur.
we were so excited about the first fish i cought, after only about three casts - and yes i was holding the rod upside down, with the reel on top (how embarassing) - that when my friend manders told me it had teeth so it must be a sleezy pike, i threw it back even though i knew it was a pickrel.. it all just happened so fast!! and i was so disappointed and mad at myself, cause he(/she) was really nice looking, and really big - i'd say > 17".
now, this is the next sucessful catch and he(/she) was a beauty - i say sucessful, because we had some serious difficulties following this effort and between dirty pikes and heavy pickrel, and according to blaine (said friend) my lack of knowing what to do when i'm reeling er in.. oh and a lack of net, this was the last success of the trip.
i'd say he was about 15 or so inches, and very not happy to be in that bucket.
here i am taking the hook out, yes i am wearing a glove, and yes that means i'm a wimp. this is my new Gerber "Bear Grylls" compact multi-tool - purchased soley for the purpose of this endeavour.
fishy was just about as long as our Estwing - Big Blue driller's hammer that we use to bash rocks.. we should have bashed his head to nock him out as it turns out suffocation isn't the best way to kill a fish, but i feel like either way it would have been cruel :(
had to wash off all the dirt, before we got to the cleaning.. belly up! ew.
this isn't quite as bad as my "ew that's gross" face in one of the other pics shot.. i'm about to make the first cut.. this is where a fillet-ing knife would have been handy.
it really wasn't that easy to cut this guy up.
make one cut down the belly, blaine said.. and one down the spine.. easier said than done.. felt like i was disecting a frog, like in 8th grade.
it was quite the struggle, not the best idea to try to take the meat off the skin without a fillet-ing knife.. better to just cook it in the skin, which is what we had to do for half the fish.
manders helped to get it all shaken up in the lemon-sesamee seasoning we got from the mine.
and then we fried 'er up in a little bit of olive oil on our not so working Coleman stove, there was some water in the fuel pipe and we had issues with it the entire trip.
at any rate, the fish was delicious.. some of the best tasting fish i have ever had.
will definitely be fishing more often, especially when on the remote and secluded lakes of northern Ontario - when with good friends and getting the job done!
Friday, June 10, 2011
beauty. Ottawa In The Summertime
for the past 3 summers i have been more than pleased to take off for work in the forest the second my school duties are complete.
i have packed up my life and jetted out to Northern Ontario for the summer months without so much as a glance over my shoulder to see what i am leaving behind.
you see, i am studying in this amazing field that provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to hunt for rocks out in remote places over the summer.
and for all of the summers i have spent in Ottawa, i was quite pleased to get out of here for a few months, breath some fresh air, get a new perspective and rejuvenate in the refreshing surroundings of nature's playground.
this is the first summer in 3 years that i have been grounded here in Ottawa, having come back from SE Asia only a couple of months ago, i have plenty of catching up to do on my masters research and it was determined that we would only need to spend a couple of weeks in our study area near Musselwhite mine this summer.
now, i am not sure if it's a renewed appreciation for the beauty this city radiates in the summertime, or a shocking new realization having experienced a toss up of such beauty and underdevelopment in SE Asia that Ottawa seems so incredibly stunning in comparison, but either way, i'll take it.. and can actually admit that i do not want to leave.
maybe it's the patios and street-open face concept of the pubs and resto-bars that line Elgin, Bank, and the streets of the market.
maybe it's that the usually unhappy civil servants have also found something to be happy about under the sun in the late afternoon.
maybe it's that everyone seems to be moving, excited to be able to get some exercise outside for a few months.. capitalizing on every opportunity to get some fresh air.
this city is so nicely set up for beautiful bike rides or rollerblading along the canal and the Ottawa river, or getting up to gatineau park to do some trail-riding, canoeing, or even some camping not too far from the city.
and on a more personal level, i have started playing ball hockey in the Ottawa Vanier Women's Ball Hockey League and the girls on my team "the pink panthers" are so awesome! we hang out after games drinking beerskis in the parking lot, and sometimes we all go out to the bar together. this is something that i didn't even notice i was missing, but i'm all too aware of it now because it feels so nice to have a good group of girls to hang around and enjoy this summertime feeling with!
i have also been climbing at Coyote Rock Gym 2-3 times a week, i got a summer membership and it's got me really driven to be fit and get strong.
anyways, on sunday i fly to Thunder Bay and then we're off to Pickle Lake from where we'll take a float plane into a remote area and set up camp for a couple of weeks! i know that as soon as i get out there, i will once again feel i'm home.. with the smells of the forest and the beauty of the sunset over the lake.
i have packed up my life and jetted out to Northern Ontario for the summer months without so much as a glance over my shoulder to see what i am leaving behind.
you see, i am studying in this amazing field that provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to hunt for rocks out in remote places over the summer.
and for all of the summers i have spent in Ottawa, i was quite pleased to get out of here for a few months, breath some fresh air, get a new perspective and rejuvenate in the refreshing surroundings of nature's playground.
this is the first summer in 3 years that i have been grounded here in Ottawa, having come back from SE Asia only a couple of months ago, i have plenty of catching up to do on my masters research and it was determined that we would only need to spend a couple of weeks in our study area near Musselwhite mine this summer.
now, i am not sure if it's a renewed appreciation for the beauty this city radiates in the summertime, or a shocking new realization having experienced a toss up of such beauty and underdevelopment in SE Asia that Ottawa seems so incredibly stunning in comparison, but either way, i'll take it.. and can actually admit that i do not want to leave.
maybe it's the patios and street-open face concept of the pubs and resto-bars that line Elgin, Bank, and the streets of the market.
maybe it's that the usually unhappy civil servants have also found something to be happy about under the sun in the late afternoon.
maybe it's that everyone seems to be moving, excited to be able to get some exercise outside for a few months.. capitalizing on every opportunity to get some fresh air.
this city is so nicely set up for beautiful bike rides or rollerblading along the canal and the Ottawa river, or getting up to gatineau park to do some trail-riding, canoeing, or even some camping not too far from the city.
and on a more personal level, i have started playing ball hockey in the Ottawa Vanier Women's Ball Hockey League and the girls on my team "the pink panthers" are so awesome! we hang out after games drinking beerskis in the parking lot, and sometimes we all go out to the bar together. this is something that i didn't even notice i was missing, but i'm all too aware of it now because it feels so nice to have a good group of girls to hang around and enjoy this summertime feeling with!
i have also been climbing at Coyote Rock Gym 2-3 times a week, i got a summer membership and it's got me really driven to be fit and get strong.
anyways, on sunday i fly to Thunder Bay and then we're off to Pickle Lake from where we'll take a float plane into a remote area and set up camp for a couple of weeks! i know that as soon as i get out there, i will once again feel i'm home.. with the smells of the forest and the beauty of the sunset over the lake.
Monday, May 16, 2011
tunes. We Are Living
i haven't posted in a while, sorry about that.
Sneijder Feat. Elsa Hill - We Are Living (Lost Mix)
the lyrics of this song are simple but true.
i believe everyone could use a little dose of this message from time to time.
sometimes i feel myself start to fray and the biggest reward comes with this feeling once i've tied a knot, changed my thoughts and am able to keep it together.
Friday, April 22, 2011
tunes. History of Electronic Music
in light of the upcoming bal en blanc in montreal this sunday, i've decided to post this website:
so that you might all have the opportunity to check out the roots and/or explore the sound of your favourite electronic beats.
i discovered this site over 4 years ago and am still today blown away by it's genius ability to bring it all together and provide good listening value for so many different types of music.
have fun with it.. go ahead, learn something new!
Monday, April 18, 2011
passion. Rak @ Siam Ink Tattoo
i often catch myself staring at the beautiful new addition to my 3/4 sleeve tattoo.
the masterpiece of dew-spotted tiger lilies and leafy greens that now marks my forearm is an ode to rak's incredible artistic talent.
resident at the spacious and impeccably clean siam ink tattoo in phuket, thailand, rak has recently won some awards including best medium sized colour tattoo and having observed his devotion to detail, i can see why.
i sat for 13 hours total; 7 hours from 8 pm to 3 am the first sitting and 6 hours from 2 pm to 8 pm later that same day.
feeling a little anxious to have it finished, i have no choice to wait until i can get back to phuket because i can not trust anyone in these parts to have the same passion and be such a perfectionist as rak.
the masterpiece of dew-spotted tiger lilies and leafy greens that now marks my forearm is an ode to rak's incredible artistic talent.
resident at the spacious and impeccably clean siam ink tattoo in phuket, thailand, rak has recently won some awards including best medium sized colour tattoo and having observed his devotion to detail, i can see why.
i sat for 13 hours total; 7 hours from 8 pm to 3 am the first sitting and 6 hours from 2 pm to 8 pm later that same day.
feeling a little anxious to have it finished, i have no choice to wait until i can get back to phuket because i can not trust anyone in these parts to have the same passion and be such a perfectionist as rak.
out. Flamingo
first time at ottawa's new homo bar, check out:
flamingo
good vibe, creative ideas.
be prepared to pay a pricy cover for decent music and/or entertainment.
it's nice to have a place to go that is open, friendly and fresh.
flamingo
good vibe, creative ideas.
be prepared to pay a pricy cover for decent music and/or entertainment.
it's nice to have a place to go that is open, friendly and fresh.
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