btwinnipeg

The Winnipeg Green Lifestyle & Organic Living Show will take place this Saturday and Sunday at the Convention Centre.

Evan and I got to enjoy a great Green dinner this week at Kimch’i Cafe with local food prepared from the Cafe, Fairmonth Winnipeg, Dandelion Eatery and Diversity Foods at the University of Winnipeg. The most amazing meal paired with organic wines and beers by the MLCC. Check out the show this weekend for great new food products, demos, fashions and fitness!

Here’s a look at all the glasses on the table for our samples.

Hey all!

Just a head’s up that there’s a lot of great music to check out here in the city this weekend – So you might wanna mark your calendar!  I’ve got a few highlights for ya:

The Park Theatre is celebrating their 5th anniversary with local music throughout the weekend.

Friday:  JP Hoe and The Truly Richards w/ James Struthers (Catch a performance by JP Hoe on Breakfast Television, tomorrow in Sound & Words)

Saturday:  Imaginary Cities w/ Royal Canoe (Imaginary Cities was featured today on Breakfast Television, and are one of my favourite new local acts!)

Or head to the West End for something a little different…

Danny Michel w/ Romi Mayes at the WECC, Saturday Sept. 11th.   He recently released “Live in Winnipeg”, which was recorded live at the West End just last year over two nights of shows.

Aaaaand Manitoba Music is taking over the Scotiabank Stage, right here at The Forks for their Big Show — celebrating local musicians.

Sunday from 3pm to 7pm:  Catch Ash Koley, JP Hoe, Magnum KI, The All Night, Enjoy Your Pumas, and Desiree Dorion.   (Watch Breakfast Television tomorrow morning to learn more about The Big Show and see performances by JP Hoe and Desiree Dorion!)

HAPPY CONCERT-GOING!

Yesterday I learned a whole new appreciation for the kind people who bag my groceries…

I was given the opportunity to bag groceries as a “celebrity bagger” at the Lindenwoods Safeway yesterday afternoon.  It was the final stage in a fundraising campaign for Muscular Dystrophy.  This year they were raffling a Back to School grocery spree (worth $1,000).

All the money raised goes to equipment funding and raising awareness for Manitobans living with MD.

It was a fun way to spend an afternoon – and if you stopped by check-out 7 yesterday, I apologize if I put the watermelon on top of your eggs!

Once the final numbers are tallied, I’ll let you know how much money they raised for the cause.

Cheers!

Jenna

I have lived at my Norwood flats home for almost 9 years and part of the backyard is covered with grapes and every fall they are ripe and tasty but I never do anything with them ! Someone told me that you can’t make wine from Concord grapes years ago and I took their word for it and never tried. Today in our “Grape to glass” wine segment I was informed that yes you can make wine from Concord grapes and it’s called “Mission” wine because it is the wine used in Churches every Sunday. I’ve never made wine from the raw grape ( only those wine kits) but I’m willing to try, if you know of the best method of making wine directly from the grape please pass it along to me and I’ll give it a shot !

I have finally experience the BDI and made my own GOOG. Evan took me to the Bridge Drive-In “home of the creamiest shakes in town” and we had a rare opportunity to head behind the counter and find out what makes a good GOOG.

First of all, I’ve never seen such a long list of ice cream choices and options! It’s an ice-cream lovers dream!

Well summer’s almost over. It’s sad, but true. So today on the show I took Pay out to the Bridge Drive-In for one last “Goog” before the end of the season.

The BDI has been a Winnipeg staple for over 50 years and my thing whenever I went there was to always get the “Blue Goo” (basically just blue ice cream).  But then later as my palate matured I graduated to the “Goog Special” (PEANUTS! BLUEBERRIES! HOT FUDGE!  ICE CREAM! WHIPPED CREAM! SPOON! STRAW!).  If you’ve never had a Goog, you really should.  It’s quite fantastic.

So just as a friendly reminder, take note that the summer won’t last for too much longer so go out and have some ice cream!  If you’re watching your weight, just go out and watch OTHER people eat ice cream.  And hey if you have any great BDI/summer/ice cream stories, feel free to post them!

Summer Evan…out!

Hello all!

As much as I hate to say it, summer is winding down and we are heading into September…  the good news is that with a new month, comes a new BT Book Club pick!

And as the weather continues to cool off, curling up with a good book is going to be all the more appealing

Today on BT, we wrapped up our August book club selection “Secret Daughter” by Shilpi Somaya Gowda.  Big thanks to all who read along with us and sent in their reviews to citysays@btwinnipeg.ca!

Krista Strang from McNally Robinson Booksellers was here to share her insights on the book, and she gave us a little teaser into September’s pick.

Since you’ve visited my blog, you’ll get the full details before anyone else!

September’s BT Book Club pick is “The Russlander” by Sandra Birdsell.  Here’s a brief synopsis of the book taken from the back of the paperback edition:

“Katherine (Katya) Vogt is now an old woman living in Winnipeg, but the story of how she and her family came to Canada begins in Russia in 1910, on a wealthy Mennonite estate. Here they lived in a world bounded by the prosperity of their landlords and by the poverty and disgruntlement of the Russian workers who toil on the estate. But in the wake of the First World War, the tensions engulfing the country begin to intrude on the community, leading to an unspeakable act of violence. In the aftermath of that violence, and in the difficult years that follow, Katya tries to come to terms with the terrible events that befell her and her family. In lucid, spellbinding prose, Birdsell vividly evokes time and place, and the unease that existed in a county on the brink of revolutionary change. The Russländer is a powerful and moving story of ordinary people who lived through extraordinary times.”

Watch BT September 7th when we officially kick off September’s edition of the BT Book Club, and a chance to win a copy of the new book!

Heart.

Colin and Justin of “Colin and Justin’s Home Heist” were in studio to give us some great design tips and tell us about their travels and decor nightmares.

You can meet them tomorrow at the Zellers at Polo Park from 12-2pm. The first 100 people will also get a free copy of their book. They are a hilarious duo. Go and meet them if you can. Have a great weekend!

The World English Dictionary defines a “yurt” as:  a circular tent consisting of a framework of poles covered with felt or skins, used by Mongolian and Turkic nomads of E and central Asia

Basically, that’s the gist of it… but yurts have also become the new, chic way to camp.  And they’re a pretty rockin’ alternative to sleeping in a tent!

We spent two nights at Stephenfield Provincial Park in a yurt, and it just might be my favourite way to camp!  Here’s why…

a) You do not have to sleep on the ground… there’s beds!

b) You can turn on lights, a fan, and the mini heater… there’s electricity!

c) You can stand up-right!

d)  The word “yurt” is THE BEST.

You still do all your cooking outside, and keep your food in a cooler – which keeps the experience on the rustic side — and camping bacon & eggs ALWAYS wins out over regular bacon & eggs

What’s great about Stephenfield yurts is that they are right on the water, so you get a great view of the lake, and four of them have beautiful, wrap-around decks to lounge on.

Other places you can find yurts in MB include Nutamik Provincial Park and Spruce Woods.

Here’s a look:

Here's a wide shot of what it looks like (some of them have decks)

Just chillin' on my wrap-around deck (check out the yurt in the background)

C'mon in!

The Morden Corn and Apple Festival is taking place this weekend and this past weekend I was at the St. Norbert Farmers’ Market and picked up some fresh Morden corn. It’s amazing! Do yourself a favour and pick up some local corn when you’re out. The kind folks with the Corn and Apples Festival also brought a massive apple pie with them. I will eat it for days. Check out the Morden corn and apple festival this weekend!
www.cornandapple.com