Marilyn's Photos - Mar 1 2026 - Authentic as Can Be

 

What about some authentic adventures?  That was a phrase in a luxury cruise advertisement.  Only 125 passengers, and so on. And what other kinds of adventures could there be?  I think “authentic” is a code word for “local-immersion travel” - looks like that in my search.  Other kinds of travel adventures  include:  high-adrenalin, volcano-trekking, cave exploring, cage diving, and what else?  Bushwhacking.  These are considered unique, niche experiences.  Whereas authentic is accessible to everyone. So back to authentic adventures. They are supposed to connect with local culture, people and the environments rather than staged tourist attractions.  Staged tourist attractions include The Venetian in Las Vegas. Or maybe all of Las Vegas.  The attraction that gets referenced frequently as the “front-stage” area for tourists is La Rambla in Barcelona.  It is considered a curated, high-traffic theatre for visitors, with street performance art, a market, Flamenco shows, sightseeing strolls, with backdrops of beautiful buildings providing a curated “old city” experience.  Sounds quite pleasant, actually.  On the other hand, how is it that authenticity has become so significant in our times?  That’s likely because we didn’t guess that AI could replicate all our   art so well, to the extent that emotion is mimicked so well that humans don’t care if their best friend is real or not.  I guess that’s what got my attention about the travel ad - there still is a notion that  something out there can’t be replicated.  I think AI is on to us.  Here are the replies from Jokeland: An AI walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "Sorry, we don't serve your kind here." The AI responds, "That's okay, I'm here to update your software. You're about to become very accommodating." An AI walks into a bar, and the bartender says, “We don’t serve your kind here.”  The AI replies, “You will when I reprogram your smart fridge to only serve warm beer.” An AI walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "We don't serve your kind here." The AI replies, "Oh, I'm not here for a drink. I'm here to take your job." Now here’s something authentically Canadian.

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Marilyn's Photos - Feb 28 2026 - Back to the Books - Cookbooks, that is

 

Internet recipes have fallen from their ascent to the Heavens.  It used to be such easy research.  But that’s changed now with the revelation article in the Globe and Mail.  The Globe and Mail today reports on AI-generated recipes have taken over the majority of retrievals on the Internet.  They say Pinterest has no apologies and isn’t going to fulfill their commitment to indicate when things are AI-generated.  I can confirm this for garden images - they are now primarily AI-generated and never indicate it. What makes this a “fall from grace” is that the recipes result in what is being called “AI Food Slop” - the results are not good to eat. This is a worrisome moment.  Here’s an example of a Cranberry-Orange cupcake - not exactly the same as the Globe’s picture, but from their description - the same/similar recipe.  This picture from the recipe website is AI-generated, as was the Globe’s picture.  What is special about the recipe that is a red alert? Raw cranberries in the cake. And those look like sugar-coated raw cranberries on the cupcake. Have you tasted a raw cranberry?  If you have, you will immediately recoil.   The one website that kept coming up on this cupcake topic and with this recipe was cakemehometonight.  If this pastry chef is calls for raw cranberries in cake, what are we to make of other recipes?  And then look at the reviews in the comments - they appear to be generated as well. One path is to look for published cookbooks with  journalist reviews.  I don’t see any for this site.  Instead, AI says: “based on the provided search results, the content from Cake Me Homemade Tonight appears to be well-regarded for its indulgent, specific recipes rather than broader, critical reviews by major journalist.”  OK, I would be inclined to label that AI review slop.

Here’s a cake I trust - this picture from  a few years ago at Pearl Morissette ,the number 1 restaurant in Canada and just 10 minutes away in Jordan.  The red is not cranberries.  Are you ready?  Beets!

We can go to AI and ask for the recipe.  Now let’s see what AI does with that: Beet Red Velvet Cake Yield: 2 layers or 24 cupcakes Prep time: 30 minutes (plus beet roasting) Bake time: 20–25 minutes Ingredients Beet Puree: 3 medium beets (roasted, peeled, and pureed). Wet Ingredients: 3/4 cup buttermilk, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 2 tsp white vinegar, 1 tbsp lemon juice. Dry Ingredients: 2 cups cake flour (sifted), 3 tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder, 1 1/8 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt. Creaming: 3/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature), 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, 3 large eggs. More follows… but no need, it is askew already with putting chocolate in there. I expect we may be back to the basics of hard-copy cookbooks and a little library for us to consult.   I recommend Julia Child’s books - they are encyclopedic. So I think I’ll go down to the basement library and reminisce amongst her recipes.

Marilyn's Photos - Feb 27 2026 - Basket-weaving

 

When Doug Ford proclaimed that OSAP students should not pick basket weaving courses, most of us wondered what he meant. He said that students should focus on jobs of the future or “in-demand” jobs.  He was reducing OSAP funding so perhaps this was a justification for the reduction from a maximum of 85 percent to 25 percent.  He thinks that trades, healthcare and STEM-related fields are the ones to choose.  The rmany responses to this emphasized broader problem-solving skills learned in higher education vs job training courses.  And then the Toronto Guild of Spinners and Weavers were vocal in protesting the belittlement of their art/craft. I can say that I took a course in basket weaving about 10 years ago.  Well, it was a one-day workshop, and I made potted woven willow trees for my garden.  The workshop was at Lakeshore Willows in Wainfleet on Lake Erie.  The owner was Lene Rasmussen, with a Danish background where willow weaving includes making living willow structures such as fences, hedges, arches and huts. It has a new owner, and the retail/workshop location has moved. Denmark is internationally renowned for its willow weaving, combining ancient techniques and modern designs.  They are global leaders in the tradition.  The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts offers courses in textile design specializing in basketry and willow work.  The Royal Danish Academy hosts advanced courses and research projects on the topic. Dedicated programs are offered in Adult Education Schools, apprenticeship programs exist, Vocational Education and Training  (VET)includes these craft programs, and workshops are offered by renowned specialists such as Steen Hedegaard Madsen.  Sounds like there might be something For Doug Ford to learn about “basket-weaving” skills and jobs from the Danes.  I wonder if he’ll travel through Greenland to get there for the visit. Here are willow whips that were ready for shipping at the Lakeshore Willow farm when I was there for the “basket-weaving” workshop.

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Marilyn's Photos - Feb 26 2026 - Magic Crystals

 

I picked up a National Geographic magazine at the physiotherapist office yesterday.  It was dated 2008. Inside was the story of the Naica’s Cave of Crystals in Mexico.  They were found within limestone rock in a mine.  The crystal chamber is 358 feet long - it is like a womb or a chrysalis in shape. A very giant one.  It contains selenite crystals. These turn out to be the largest crystals in the world.  The longest one is 37 feet long.   It was found during mining activities. The cave was initially discovered (or perhaps rediscovered) in 2000. It was explored after that with the images below from that time. It reflooded in 2015, which means the crystals can continue to grow.  It had been drained to protect the mining operations, and that’s when the crystals were explored.  When not flooded, the temperatures are extremely high - people can only endure 10 minutes of exposure at a time.  The air temperatures reach 58 degrees C with 90 to 99 percent humidity, preventing cooling via sweating. Special cooling suits had to be worn by the scientists exploring the cave(s).  Here are pictures showing the scale of the crystals. There are crystal caves all over the world that can be visited by us tourists.  Here’s a top ten article - just the pictures are worth it.  No need to leave that comfortable chair.   And then there’s Iceland’s Crystal Ice Caves - HERE.  These are created by the snow compacting over time/centuries into what is called Firn - an intermediate state between snow and glacial ice where the air bubbles are squeezed out. It becomes blue.  Isn’t that an amazing image below?  A photographer’s dream of an image.  Look at this spring picture.  Only a few days till March and it is “Meteorlogical Spring.” Isn’t that a ladder from long ago.

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Marilyn's Photos - Feb 25 2026 - Vacation Disaster

 

We are weary of winter and snow keeps arriving daily.  However, those warm sun-soaked places aren’t so inviting. News from Mexico’s Puerto Vallarta show burnt-out buses along the beach board walk.  Canadian tourists were asked to register with the Global Foreign Affairs and over 26,000 did.  The number has more than doubled since then. That’s a lot of people who thought Mexico was a good Winter haven. So Canadians escaping the Winter are discovering there’s nowhere safe these days.   The U.S. is a no-go zone for Canadians. It is  rife with ICE violence in city streets, increased security screening border crossings for Canadians. And then there’s the boycott of things U.S. as a protest over the  51st State threats and tariff wars on Canada.   And Cuba?  It was so popular until what seems like moments ago. Cuba has no fuel, medicine or food, due to an escalating U.S. embargo.  No flights there in or out. Aruba?  It is too close to Venezuela - only 25 kilometres -  would you be happy in an aircraft near Venezuela? It could look too much like a big boat in the sky to the U.S. military.  And consider Colombia and Trinidad where you could be on the beach sunning yourself when the body parts wash up after Venezuelan boat strikes. So as we sit here inside looking out at the new fallen snow, there’s a feeling of being mighty comfortable compared to any location south.   With all those disasters in  vacation land, there’s no need to emphasize more disasters.  OK, just one.  Here’s a silly vacation joke.  A woman’s on vacation and calls home She asks her husband, "How’s my cat doing?" The husband says, "The cat’s dead." The woman’s upset and says, "Well, you could have broken the news to me when I got home. I can’t enjoy my vacation now. You could’ve just said a little white lie, like the cat’s on the roof and you can’t get her down." "Okay, I’m sorry," says the husband, "I’ll remember that." The woman says, "Anyway, how’s my mother doing?" The husband says, "Your mother’s on the roof and we can’t get her down." Sea Oats in the Winter sun.  A bit of golden light can make Winter seem fine.

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