He's From the Deep North

Originally Posted 7/26/08

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ROAD TRIP!

My boss just got back from Canada and brought me back my favourite (note Canadian spelling) candy bar that you can't get in the states, the Cadbury Wunderbar. There really is no way to describe the goodness that is the Wunderbar. It is basically creamy Cadbury chocolate (which is not the same as the Cadbury chocolate sold here) covering peanut butter and caramel. And now that I have had a taste of it I want more! Canada is only a short drive up 1-15 through Idaho. Who's In? I am thinking that I will be needing boxes and boxes.

*******UPDATE*******

This past June I took this road trip to Canada. While there I stocked up on Wunderbar's and Canadian Kit Kats, well I thought I stocked up. I am now down to my last Kit Kat and a few lone Wunderbar's. I have found a store here locally that sells Wunderbars but I am in still in search of the Kit Kats. I may have to take another trip to the Deep North to get some!

Last Day in Vancouver

Our last day in Vancouver and Canada turned into more of an adventure then we thought, Becky claimed that it was because we were living in a sitcom. After checking out of the hotel we stopped by Costco to stock up on some Canadian candies. We (or probably more me then anyone else) may have purchased $100 dollars worth of chocolate, if Cadbury would just sell the Wunderbar here I wouldn't have to stockpile them! And don't even get me started on Canadian Kit Kat bars, come on Hershey's just ask Nestle for the recipe already! Then we had one last battle with traffic, this time waiting to cross the border, I kid you not when I say we were in line for more then 2 hours. Then when we finally got to the actual border crossing things got really interesting. The US Border agents made the Canadian ones look like fuzzy stuffed animals. After handing over all our passports the agent then asks what we are bringing back, now at this point I had already had my fill of traffic and wasn't thinking clearly and I respond other then souvenirs? To which the agent retorts souvenirs are things Rainman. Nice. Welcome back to your country with a well placed insult, it's good to be home! Now I am watching him scan and read all the passports after scanning them all and taking his time reading each one he tells us that they are having computer problems and we need to park and go inside, which we do. After getting inside we find it odd that those so called computer problems seem to be affecting more types of people then others, lets just say non-English speaking, and leave it at that. While waiting in yet another line we see a sign that informs us that we should be offered a friendly welcome to the USA and that the goal of the agents is to make sure we get through the crossing as quickly and comfortably as possible. Failed on both counts and we never got that welcome either. I understand that it is their job to protect the border and really I am grateful for it but at this point in time I just kept telling myself that it is our tax dollars that are currently paying to delay, harass and just make for an overall lousy experience and really who wouldn't want to pay for that. As we make our way through what can only be described as the worst Disneyland-type line ever we are approached from and agent and asked if we are the folks from Utah. I wonder how he could spot us so easily in this line....nope not going there. He asks us if we cross the border often, seeing as Utah is land locked by many states on all sides and the nearest border is 1000 miles away we say no. We are then informed that the Washington apples that we bought the day before could not in fact be brought back into Washington as the origin sticker had been removed. Fine keep the apples it's no big deal to us. Sorry apples I guess you really can't go home again. We are then told that we still have to wait in line but it should only be a few more minutes before we are back on the road. A brief slimmer of hope can now been seen on our faces, it is soon quickly erased. When we get to the counter we are asked the same questions that we were asked outside. Our newest agent friend then tells us that he needs to speak to one of our travel companions separately. Turns out she had been to Algeria a year ago and this raises all sorts of red flags, don't ask me why, and that they have to search our car again. So we are sent to the back of the line to wait yet again. We have now been within 500 feet of the border for about 5 hours. After they check the car and don't find anything to detain us any longer we are allowed to come back in the USA. We quickly make our way into Washington and don't stop for 50 miles just to make sure they don't change their minds and demand that we turn over any more fruit! The lesson I learned from all of this is next time I am flying. Overall the trip was a blast and now we all have a great story to tell about trying to get home and how apples and Algeria should never mix.

Due South

The warm weather of the south is calling my name. Not that it has been terrible here but any excuse to get some squeaky cheese is alright with me. I hope you are having a great St. Patrick's Day!

Sweet Tooth Overload

Awhile back me and the Fuzz made some Upside-Down Apple French Toast and I can tell you it was an overload for any sweet tooth. It went a little something like this:

For the recipe click here and if that isn't enough to satisfy your craving click here for more.

Same Old, Same Old

Do you ever get that sinking feeling; you know the one where you think, man this isn't going to end well? Tonight I have that feeling and I think it might be due to all the empty dark chocolate Reese's containers scattered around me. Really, I should know better but I just couldn't help myself. They were so little that I figured one more couldn't be all that bad. I was wrong. I have that sinking feeling.

Out and About

Hop in the car and come along for a ride around the Salt Lake Valley. Just don't touch the radio. Oh and make sure to drive on over to Jane's for more road trips.

In Downtown Salt Lake we see City Creek rising.

All roads (well at least those going East and West) lead to the mountains.


Now at the southern end of the valley we come across more construction.

Why, it's non other then the valley's first In N Out Burger.
I am a little excited for this store to open so I can get my Double Double fix.

Birthday Fair!

This weekend we (click here, here and here) celebrated Diana's Birthday, hit up the Utah State Fair, had some Chinese food and really just a good time all around. The proof is in the pictures.

A special thanks to Caity for orginazing the suprise party and planning the trip to the fair and for helping take some of these pictures and really for making the whole weekend!

CornerView: Best Kept Secret

Okay, I don't know how much of a secret this place is, as there are always people there when I am there, but I thought I would share it with you anyway. I first tried Bellissimo Gelato after being told, by a true Italian, that it was the best gelato he had had outside of Italy. As I have never been to Italy I decided to take his word for it and I am glad I did. This gelato was amazing and I have gone back many times with many people and tried many different flavors and combinations. So if you are in the Salt Lake area be sure to check them out.

Shhhhh...for more secrets visit Jane. Thanks to everyone who has visited by little blog for CornerViews. It has been a blast reading all your great comments and seeing your take on each of the themes! Feel free to visit anytime. A BIG thanks to Jane for putting CornerView together and be sure to look for more CornerViews this fall.

CornerView: 7:45

First a disclaimer, I was in vacation mode for this weeks CornerView so the first two photos are as close to 7:45 as I could get. On Sunday I totally spaced my camera so the photo is from a similar event at the same place a few weeks prior.

Friday: In Boise, ID with Becky. This heart bump is for you!

Saturday: While in Idaho I saw the new Harry Potter movie...twice. After flying home, I had to start reading the book again...naturally.

Sunday: It was off to my families house for dinner then over to the cousins for some homemade peach cobbler. Thanks Collin!

For more weekend warriors see Jane.

Cookie Anyone?

Whoops. I seem to have made a few extra.

CornerView: Staple Foods

This weeks CornerView theme is staple foods. And to be honest I love all foods and therefore consider them all to be staples, with certain notable exceptions that is. Seen here is one of my faves a flame grilled chicken that has been soaked in a secret recipe to ensure that is stays tender and juicy during the flame grilling process. To see other staples visit Jane.

Back to Nature with R.G.

Gnomes love S'mores.

The Little Grand Canyon isn't so little, even to non-gnomes.


Oh, right. Looking at the camera.

Here fishy, fishy. Oh well, perhaps next time.

Here I am just outside of the campsite at Huntington State Park. I hope you enjoyed a few photos from my first camping trip. Cheerio. -R.G.

CornerView Cafe

This weeks Corner View theme is coffee. First I must offer up a confession. I don't love the taste of coffee, but I do love the smell. My co-worker (from Italy) makes his own coffee (he compares the office coffee to sludge) in his pod. The smell of his coffee and freshly printed paper gives me the feeling that I am at Barnes & Noble in a lounge chair enjoying a good book. Sadly I am not. Its not just the taste of coffee that I don't enjoy, its also the temperature. You see I am part furnace; I am hot all the time and adding a hot beverage to this equation is not something I like to do. So where do I get my caffeine kick to start the morning...

That's right my kick comes in the form of Coca Cola. It's cold, it's refreshing, it's caffeinated! Is this the most healthy substitute? No, and for that reason I usually stick to water in the mornings, but there are some days where I just need a Coke. Make sure to top off your cup by visiting the following:

jane, ladybug-zen, ian, bonnie, esti, sophie, cele, modsquad,caitlin, joyce, ani, kim, a day that is dessert, natsumi, epe, kaylovesvintage, trinsch, c.t.,jeannette, outi, schanett, ritva, dongdong, francesca, state of bliss, jennifer, dana, denise, cabrizette, bohemia girl, dianna, isabelle, amber, a girl in the yellow shoes, mister e, janis, kari, jgy, jenna, skymring, elizabeth, audrey, allison, lise, cate, mon, victoria, crescent moon, erin, otli, ida, caroline, lisa, dorte, kimmie, la lune dans le ciel, nicola, malo, vanessa, britta, virgina, april, rebecca, b, sunnymama, kyndale, samantha, karen, kristina, angelina, dorit, goldensunfamily, sophie, janet, nicki, ruth, mcgillicutty

Sweet Saturday

A funny thing happen on the way to the workweek. It was called Saturday and all I ate was sweets! That's right all sweets all the time. Let me break it down for you. Breakfast: A warm Belgium waffle with vanilla bean ice cream. Lunch: Dutch apple pie, served warm of course. Dinner: A chocolate covered doughnut. Late Night Snack: Coca Cola and popcorn, okay the popcorn was more salty then sweet but you get the idea. No wonder I feel so lethargic today, that is once massive sugar overdose which resulted in one major sugar crash. I am too old for this stuff!

Go to Bread

For the full story behind this post click here. Now Brenda has made good on the comment I left on her blog and made me a home made treat. And what a treat it was! Brenda was sweet (if you tasted this you would know what I mean) enough to bake me some Amish friendship bread and I am fulfilling my end by posting about it. Really this picture doesn't do it justice and if the bread lasted longer (I might have eaten all in one sitting) I would have gotten a better shot. Thanks Brenda!! Now I need to start making my homemade items for Bonnie, Caity, Jess, and of course Brenda.

Breakfast Corner

A disclaimer first. I don't usually eat breakfast...at least not in the morning hours. I like sleep much better and choose to forgo food for 10 more minutes of shut eye. Is this a healthy choice? Probably not. But the weekends are a whole different story, brunch is the perfect meal time. This past weekend I had this...

...Jule Kake. A Scandinavian breakfast that is similar to French Toast only it is made from Jule bread, which is described as a fruit cake like bread. This is the only type of fruit cake I would consider eating. I was surprised that I liked this as much as I did, it really was good. The Jule Kake was devoured at Finns in Salt Lake City.


I wish my breakfast always looked like the one I had above. Sadly, this is what my breakfasts usually look like. Also they usually take the place of dinner like this...



...It's breakfast somewhere, right? Now that spring is in full force and I have cleaned off my deck, I am able to go outside and enjoy this more typical, for me at least, breakfast or rather dinner. Okay now I am hungry! I can't wait to see what every one's breakfast looks like. For a list of everyone that is sharing there Corner View breakfast click here. Also if you want to be added to my Corner View sidebar list, just leave a comment and I will make sure you are added.

A Guamese Weekend

The title will make sense to most of you who know me and I want to thank all of you who helped make this years Guamese Weekend so much fun. Friday, Bonnie & Jon took over Caity's party (since she was sick) at the last minute and it was a very nice, relaxing, intimate gathering filled with way too much delicious food.

Then on Saturday morning the group from the night before (Bonnie, Jon, Gav, Jess, Diana) plus Ciaty and Bob, went to Johanna's Kitchen for breakfast and more importantly...scones!


Then later that afternoon it was downtown with the whole fam for Benihana's. We went for the lunch special and unfortunately I think the "lunch special" just meant that they had limited staff as we saw our waiter once at the beginning and that was all. But it was still a good time and I love the food even if the service is sub par.





Then it was off to The Gateway to wait until it was dark enough for the lights to come on at Temple Square.

Thanks to everyone who made this years Guamese weekend so much fun!