Here's come the snow again

A little weather update.

So we made it through the last 30 cms. The main roads are plowed, but the sidestreets are kind of left on their own. Sidewalks? Forget it. There are no sidewalks unless a business decides to shovel around its store. Sidewalks around schools are plowed, but just to the school property limit and then the pile of snow and more footpaths. It's slow going for a pedestrian like me, but I'm enjoying the workout and I'm just glad my local shuttle bus is running since they often don't when we get a lot of snow because the hills are just too steep.

Tonight we're supposed to get a little more snow followed by even more snow tomorrow. It's just going to get more interesting. db and I are going to a friend's place tomorrow evening so I'm thinking the bus is the best option even though db has the company car over the holidays.

Needless to say running outdoors is not an option. There are no sidewalks to run on. The gym has limited hours tomorrow and is closed on Christmas so I'll just have to go for a walk on the snowbank/sidewalk and call it a day.

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Christmas dinner is decided. Originally we were going to make stuffed eggplant, but db really wanted to make something Italian since it's a bit of a tradition in his family. So we're going to make canneloni stuffed with butternut squash and mixed mushrooms. It will be baked with db's fabulous and famous tomato. Christmas day will be about the cooking (like any holiday or special event in our house).

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On the bus home I travelled with a young co-worker (young as in just 20 years old). Last year when he found out I was vegan I had to explain what vegan meant and he was shocked that such an option existed and kept asking me things like "you don't even eat chicken?" It was one of those "what do you eat" moment and actually was kind of funny.

Well he's come a long way in a year. We talked a lot about food on the bus ride home and it seems he's more aware of eating more healthy and showed concern over fast food and how unhealthy it is to eat that way. I could also hear that he understood better why I'm vegan. He was telling me about a restaurant in van city that he thought I might enjoy and searched his wallet for their business card. While he was searching he came across a KFC coupon. I said to him, "don't ever eat there." He said "I know I shouldn't. I saw a video on-line about how they get the meat from their chickens." He'd seen a PETA video on KFC and he said he couldn't eat there anymore. He then said, "It's wrong what they're doing. If it's true." I assured him that the video was real and was just a glimpse into some of the horrors of the meat industry. He's obviously a little more of a conscious omnivore.

When we went our separate ways I felt good despite the subject matter. I could see how much he had grown in a year. He's very open to all kinds of foods and cuisines and was thoughtful and respectful of my choices. He was much more aware of vegetarianism. What a difference a year makes.

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I just finished Peter Singer's and Jim Mason's book The Way We Eat: Why our Food Choices Matter. I'll hopefully get a review up shortly on the Book Collective site. I'll write that one over the holidays.

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For now I'm going to go watch the rest of the Blues game as they get defeated by the Red Wings. With so many injuries it's tough to watch the team struggle. Kariya, Andy MacDonald, Eric Brewer (the captain), Oshie, Eric Johnson, Jay McKee are all injured and are all key players. It's a wild time.