3 Very Important Questions

Cocaine Princess here.

I like bagels. My favorite are Jalapeño Cheddar Bagels. Usually I'm happy with just a bowl of cereal but there have been those rare occasions where I will go wild and eat a toasted bagel in place of cereal.

Earlier this week I came across a disturbing piece of news. The disturbing news: all these years I have been mispronouncing the word BAGEL. At least I think I have been? Allow me to explain. Let's rewind back to exactly 3 days ago: It was Tuesday if you're having trouble figuring that one out.  Saturday through Monday I was so busy that I didn't have any time for myself. Tuesday was really the only day I did. Over the past couple of weeks I had DVR'ed several TV shows and decided Tuesday was a good day as any to catch up on them. One of them happened to be "Community." The episode: Britta played by cutie Gillian Jacobs is teased by her peers for her pronunciation of the word “Bagel.” She calls it a BAG-EL. Hmm, so this got me thinking, is it BAY-GUL or BAG-EL?

Is there only one proper way to say the word or are they both considered acceptable? Myself, I always call it a BAY-GUL but up here many people will in fact refer to the doughy delight as a BAG-EL. Hell, there's even a Tim Horton's commercial involving an office worker writing down lunch orders. One co-worker replies, "a bag-el." And speaking of Tim Horton's, when I sometimes stop by during the mornings I have heard a few customers say, "I'd like to order a toasted BLT BAG-EL."

Again I ask the question: Is it BAY-GUL or BAG-EL?

For the past couple of days I have been agonizing trying to find the answer. After putting on my sleuthing cap, I did a little research on the web and was surprised to see how many others have asked my exact same question. I even found a fanatical group of bagel lovers and according to them the correct way to say the word is BAG-EL and anyone who says otherwise is wrong.

So I ask you my lovelies 3 Very Important Questions:

1}

DO YOU EAT BAGELS AND IF SO WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE?

2} 

WHEN YOU ARE AT A RESTAURANT ORDERING, DO YOU SAY BAY-GUL OR BAG-EL?

3}

FOR THOSE WHO CALL IT A BAY-GUL, DO YOU TEASE THOSE WHO CALL IT A BAG-EL?

If you feel these questions are a little too heavy for a Friday then please take your time. Think about it over the weekend and get back to me next week.

Hmm, all this talk about bay-guls and bag-els has got me hungry. I think I'll pop some in the toaster after I post this or unless Mr. Sandman plans on skipping his visit tonight I think I'll just go to bed instead.

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My loyal and dear readers it's finally Friday. Made it through another week. Hooray!

Whatever your plans are have an awesome weekend.-x


XOXOXOXO,
Cocaine Princess

The Post Has No Title Because I Can't Think Of One

Cocaine Princess here.  

Sorry for the short post. I've had a pretty busy week.
 
Yesterday I was at the dentist for my annual 6month check up. Awesome news, no cavities! While I was leaned back in that oh so comfy dental chair, on the ceiling were 4 brain teaser posters, giving the patient something to do while their teeth are being cleaned.

I thought I'd share some of them. Can you solve them?


1.
GGE
GEG
EGG 

2.
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS
IS


3. 
DD
OO
OO 
GG

OO
NN

4.
C  O  F  F  E  E
 
Answers are at the end of this post.

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My loyal and dear readers it's finally Friday! SATURDAY is the first day of spring and we're already experiencing spring-like temperatures here. Bless you Mother Nature.

Whatever your plans are have a tremendous weekend.-x

XOXOXOXO,

Cocaine Princess

ANSWERS:

1. Scrambled Egg

2.Tennis 

3. Up To No Good

4. Coffee Break

4 Leaf Clover

Cocaine Princess here.

Top o' the morning!


Today is St. Patrick's Day! It's not a day I celebrate on a grand scale but I do observe it by wearing green and by getting my nails colored in green polish. I have also decided on eating something green. No not a salad. This year I have selected........a mint chocolate square.

If you’ve been following my blog you’ll remember my post about the liquor store opening in our new neighborhood strip mall. We received the official LCBO recipe magazine on the day of the grand opening and browsing through it I came across 2 drinkies that are perfect for March 17th. 

“Smashed Irishman”

* 8 fresh mint leaves    
* 2 tablespoons sugar syrup
* 3 ounce Irish Whiskey
* 1 mint sprig

Place mint leaves on bottom of glass. Add syrup and combine well. Fill glass with crushed ice. Add whiskey. Stir. Garnish with sprig of mint.

“Shamrock Stinger”

* 3 tablespoons bourbon
* 2 teaspoons Southern Comfort
* 2 teaspoons green crème de mente

Pour all ingredients into shaker 2/3 full of ice. Shake well. Strain into glasses filled with crushed ice.


I’m not too crazy about the above drinks for myself, however here’s one I really like and for anyone else who maybe craving a “Shamrock Shake,” and because McDonald's doesn't sell them up here anymore.


In a blender, combine the following ingredients and blend for 2 milk shakes

* 4 scoops mint chocolate chip ice cream
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1 drop of peppermint extract

Pour into glasses with a sprig of mint and or whipped cream garnish. Add additional milk to the blender if a thinner shake is desired. You can also add some additional chocolate syrup if you like. 

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My lovelies, in some way shape or form may you all find your 4 Leaf Clover today.


Happy St. Patrick's Day


XOXOXOXO,
Cocaine Princess

“The Remote....Can’t Reach....Thirsty.”

Cocaine Princess here.

Sunday night I fell ill. It was somewhere between the time of 9pm-10:00pm when I felt sick. I was watching the Oscars. Every year I stay up and watch the entire event starting from the red carpet portion to the post Oscar Show but on Sunday I wasn’t particularly feeling up to it.

MONDAY

I woke up with a pounding headache, scratchy throat and my joints were in the most excruciating pain, like someone was squeezing them in a vice grip. I spent most of the day under the covers.

TUESDAY

Not wanting to spend another day in bed and needing a change of scenery, slowly I got out of bed and went down the stairs. When I made it to the bottom I was out of breath and worn out. I thought about going back into bed but when I looked back I definitely had a change of mind: walking back up the stairs resembled climbing Mt. Everest. When your joints are aching, going up and down any stairs or even walking is not exactly an easy thing to do. It can be very painful but by taking itty-bitty steps I made it into the family room and fell sort of sideways on the couch where I laid there for a good couple of minutes before turning myself over. The remote was in my reach but it required me to stretch my arm out which was every bit as painful as walking. One late night I saw an infomercial. It was for a product called “E-Z Grabber.”  At that moment that’s what I needed. With the remote finally in my hands I was able to hit the power button only to have the remote slip out of my weak and frail hands. I decided to call for help. Correction, I tried calling for help. Because I had put all my strength in going down the stairs and reaching for the remote I could only come up with a HELP that came in the form of a very low whisper. But with sheer determination I managed to get one audible and strong “HELP ME!” Sister came running in a panic, “darling what’s wrong?! Why are you out of bed?!” “The remote, it fell on the floor and I can’t reach it, and I’m thirsty.” “What?” she asked. My mouth was so dry that I barely got the sentence out the first time and she expected me to repeat it? Well I couldn't. So sounding like a cave-person I said, “the remote....can’t reach....thirsty.” She looked down on the floor and saw the remote lying face down and then she looked at me-- and trust me it wasn’t a sisterly love look. Hell, it wasn’t even an ‘I like you look.’  She furrowed her brows and her forehead started to wrinkle with several deep lines. I thought now would be a good time as any to let her know she really needed to start using a wrinkle creme but given the mood she was in I decided to save that particular conversation for another day. She took a very stern tone with me: “What is the matter with you? Calling for help like that? You scared me. I thought it was something serious.” “It is. I need the remote control, please. ” I replied back followed by a sneeze. “Bless you,” she said. “Thank you.” I was hoping the sneeze would get me some sympathy and turn my sister’s scowled look into a friendly one. It didn’t. You know what she did instead? My sister AKA Miss Meanie Pants picked up the remote and rather than giving it to me as I had so nicely asked her to do, she placed it on top of the fireplace mantle. I don’t know what channel the TV switched to when the remote fell on the floor but I was stuck watching a black and white western film dubbed in Chinese that wasn't even subtitled.

Oh yeah, I suppose I should mention Miss Meanie Pants did bring me a glass of juice.

WEDNESDAY

By Wednesday morning my headache and more importantly the joint pain were diminishing. I was feeling better.

THURSDAY

Yesterday I felt 95% better than I did on Monday. I was pretty much back to myself and most of all was relieved at being able to get out and enjoy the fresh air. It rained all Wednesday night so whatever little clumps of snow that were lingering on people’s lawn, the rain melted away. Although the grass is yellow and muddy it’s a welcome change from the white frozen stuff. The weather has greatly improved as well: We reached a high of +11C and for us at this time of year that is considered warm.

I had missed 3 days of working out and was really looking forward to my daily morning jog. I was out the door by 7am and who do I see? Frick and Frack. {Allow me to explain: for the past week a gang of crows have descended on our street and it seems they’ve taken up permanent residency here. They arrived last Saturday and I don’t recall the neighborhood putting out a vacancy sign for crows so I’m not sure why they selected our area. There is at least 1 or 2 on everyones' property either sitting on their roof or on the hood of their car, on the front porch or in our case, the lamp post. They just sit there cawing like maniacs in unison with the rest of the crows. Hmm, maybe they’re not a gang of crows but rather a choir of crows? Oh, did I mention I find Frick and Frack and the rest of their frigging friends irritating? Because I do!} Apparently telling a pair of crows to "SHOO" does not work but if you say it enough times it does! The magic number, 4. At first they kept spreading their ugly wings while cawing at me at the same time until they finally got the message: Frick and his companion flew off. Good Riddance! Not even 5 seconds had passed when they made their grand return in style by swooping down low and flying right past my head just before retiring back on the lamp post, and when they did they let out a rather loud caw. I can tell you right now my lovelies it was no ordinary caw. It was more like they were laughing at me. Ha! Shoo us all you want. We’re not going anywhere. I was tempted to throw some rocks but realized it would be a total waste of time and figured they’ll leave in their own time.

There you have it my lovelies, a detailed account of how I spent the last 4 days.

My loyal and dear readers it’s finally Friday.

Remember to turn your clocks ahead this weekend. We spring forward this Sunday. I am so happy that longer days of light are here....... even if it means losing an hour of sleep.

Whatever your plans are have a sparkling weekend.-x

XOXOXOXO,
Cocaine Princess 

Frigging Best Buy

 Cocaine Princess here.

Earlier in the week my laptop shut down on me. I was in the middle of working when without any warning it turned off. Not this problem again! It happened to my previous laptop where I wound up buying a new one. I hit the power button and it turned back on. Less than 10 seconds later it turned off, so I turned it back on or at least I tried too. It wouldn’t. Panic started to set it.....I pleaded out loud to my lap top: “I take care of you don’t I? Aren’t I soft and tender when I touch your keys? I keep you shiny and clean all the time, don’t I? No one uses you but me so what gives? Please, please pretty please turn on!” Nothing. I even blew it a gentle kiss in hopes my kiss would have some type of magical power and my laptop would turn back on, similar to Prince Charming kissing Sleeping Beauty. It failed. My precious laptop remained in sleep mode.

I right away called up tech support. A recorded message in a robotic tone said: Due to the high volume of calls your call will be answered in sequence. Your wait time is.....twenty.....five... minutes. Please remain on the line to speak to a technical support representative.” I can tell you now it was more than a “twenty.....five minute” wait until my call was answered. I informed the tech support person my problem. Her reply: “Did you plug it in?” “Yes I plugged it in,” I said. She suggested I try several different things and they all failed miserably. Because the 1 year warranty was over her recommendation was I take my laptop back to the point of purchase, and since I had bought the protection plan any repair costs would be covered.

Where was the point of purchase? In the city at a huge electronic store called Best Buy or as I like to refer to it, Frigging Best Buy

I looked at the time, morning rush hour was over and evening rush hour was hours away so I made a trip into the city. As I approached the mall I’m thinking where do I park? Outside or inside? Since I have not yet fully mastered the art of parallel parking I parked inside the mall’s garage and entered into the mall with my laptop in hand. {It was actually in my laptop bag but you get the picture} It was a good 5 minute walk to get to the store but of course it took several minutes longer because I was slowing down whenever I would pass one of my favorite stores to take a quick browse.

Upon entering I was greeted by a very cheerful employee in a blue Polo style T-shirt with the store’s name stitched in yellow. I headed on over to the customer service desk and thankfully there were only a couple of people ahead of me.  My turn came and unless the customer service girl was under the impression I had some type of hearing problem she spoke into the microphone that was attached to the cash register and said: “Next in line please.” Good grief I was an arm's length away! I approached the counter and took out my laptop while telling her the trouble I was having. Her reply: “Did you plug it in?” For the 2nd time I replied: “Yes I plugged it in.” Speaking into her microphone she paged an associate from the computer department. I stood to one side waiting for who ever it was she paged to come by. After 15 minutes I requested to know what the hold up was. The customer service rep made another page and then another. Finally an associate wearing a Tee with the words “Tech Geek Squad” arrived and once again I explained the reason I was there. His reply: Did you plug it in?” I swear on all that is holy I began giggling because I was honestly beginning to think I was wearing a sign that read: I AM A MORON. It’s like they couldn’t understand the part where each time I would say, “It was plugged in. I was working on my laptop when it suddenly shut off and then wouldn’t turn back on.” He fiddled around with it and came to the conclusion it was a hardware problem, something malfunctioned inside. “Can you take a look at it please and fix it?” I asked. After all he was wearing a tech geek squad shirt. His reply: “We don't do any hardware repairs.” The first thing out of my mouth: I went all Bart Simpson on him and said, Aye Carumba! The 2nd thing out of my mouth: “What the hell did I pay the extra $250.00 for?” I waved the receipt in front of him showing I had purchased the protection plan. “The plan covers screen damage, battery replacement, virus removal only.”  I opened my mouth and no words came out only a depressing sigh. Trust me I was not giggling or laughing. I was in a different sort of mood. The type of mood where I wanted to hurl something through a window. “Don’t you think the sales associate should have told me that?” I asked. He didn’t respond back to my question however he did say: “You might be better off buying a new one. We have a good sale this week on HP 16.5 inch laptops. I can show you.” “No I don’t want to buy a new one,” I stated. “To have the hardware repaired will run you about the same cost as buying a new one.” “You don’t know that for sure,” I said. “Let me ask you a question: if a customer buys an expensive electronic item from your store and something happens to it that isn’t covered by the plan, is that the advice you dish out, to buy a new one? “No. They have the option of having it repaired,” he answered. “So where do you recommend I go to get my laptop repaired?” Very slowly like a sloth he went to the computer and I could detect some type of attitude coming off of him, like it was some big bother for him to check and see. I mean come on, how hard is it to do a search on the computer? He provided me with the name and address of a certified repair center. Location: China Town. I let out another depressing sigh. This wasn’t meant to be said out loud but it just came out: “Why China Town?” “It’s where most of the computer head offices choose to set and open up their repair centers,” he answered. I was ready to leave and head on over since it was less than a 5 minute drive......until he gave me the store hours: 8am - 2pm. It was 3:30. This time I didn't let out a depressing sigh......Just a low guttural groan.

The next day I made another trip into the city. I had left very early in the morning since I needed to be somewhere else at a certain time later on in the day. I was so not in the mood to drive in morning rush hour traffic. Oh I ask you, is there anything more fun than sitting in traffic and driving slower than a turtle? Sister decided to lecture me before I left and said not to be in a bad mood otherwise it would set the tone for the rest of the day. I popped in Lady Gaga’s CD at around the time I was sandwiched in between 2 big rigs. I hate when that happens because I’m always afraid I’m going to be flattened like a pancake. I couldn’t even switch lanes to get away from them because traffic was at a standstill. Remembering what “A” said about not being in a bad mood I turned up the volume and sang along out loud: Rah-rah-ah-ah-ah, Roma, Ro-ma. Singing out loud is such an awesome stress release and besides it’s not like there was anyone else in the car with me and the windows were tinted so why not? In case you’re wondering I sing off key.

I arrived in China Town close to 8:30am and my first task was to find a parking spot because unfortunately there is no valet parking available anywhere. Driving along I spotted the repair center and hoped to find parking close by and I did....well sort of. I found a self parking spot 1 block away. I exited the car and walked on over to the silver machine to receive my ticket that I am required to place face up in my dashboard. The machine had a sign: NO CASH. CREDIT CARD ONLY. I took out my card and inserted it into the slot only to have the card returned back to me. The screen read: ERROR. CANNOT READ CARD. Okay, I thought.....Let’s try this again......Nope same message.......I tried again and again and then I realized why the error message kept flashing. I pulled out my debit card by mistake. Oops. In my defense both my debit and credit card look very similar.

Finding a parking spot was one successful achievement completed. Next one: crossing the street without getting injured or killed. Remember when you were little and you were taught to look both ways before you cross the street? In China Town one needs to say a prayer as well. I kid you not!! It’s damn scary crossing the street because the cabbies, they don’t pay any attention to the traffic lights and are under the impression they own the roads and therefore the rules don’t apply to them. I approached the intersection and there were a group of people already waiting to cross. The light turned green. Now, on any normal street the cars will stop allowing you to walk smoothly across to the other side without having to fear for your life. In China Town you need to make a mad dash while saying a silent prayer. I’m happy to report I made it across both times without a single scratch! 

I make it to the repair center and there was a long line. There were 5 workers at the counter and because they were efficient the wait wasn’t too long. When my turn arrived I told the tech the problem I was having and before he had a chance to respond I said “and yes I PLUGGED it in.” After examining it he said the exact same thing as the helpful associate at frigging Best Buy did, hardware malfunction. He added that it was simple to fix and my laptop would be returned to me within a week as he handed me my little ticket receipt. Before I left I questioned him whether or not it would be better purchasing a new one than having it fixed? He shook his head no. I decided to share with him the conversation I had with the helpful associate. He told  me I had been grossly misinformed and then he advised me if ever I was to buy a laptop, to buy directly from the manufacturer and not from a big box chain. I don’t know why I keep shopping at frigging Best Buy. Each time I go in there especially on the weekends it’s like a mad house. It's packed with customers, you can never find anyone to help you and when you do the associates aren’t well, they're not very helpful. While I was there I picked up a DVD: Paranormal Activity. Considering how far behind I am in my DVDs I probably won’t get around to watching it until late summer and then I will give you my review.

For the past couple of days I’ve been using my sister’s laptop. I can’t say I’m liking it because I’m not getting that feeling that I have with mine. I just can’t get myself use to it. When I touch the keys I don’t feel the same connection as I did with mine. When I’m on my computer I’m usually sitting on the sofa so I tried getting myself comfy on the sofa but I couldn’t even get cozy there. I realized my sofa spot is only reserved for when I’m with my laptop. Instead I tried sitting in a variety of different places around the house. At one point I felt like Goldilocks when she illegally entered into the home of the 3 Bears and was testing out the beds. The last place I tried sitting, at the Winston Churchill desk and there I felt at ease. Okay allow me to explain: Awhile back I bought a desk. No I take that back. My sister was the one who wanted it. We saw a desk at a furniture store, an old English style Tudor desk and “A” thought it would go perfect with the den’s decor: Old English. “A” insisted on having at least one room in the house with an English flair but I wasn’t too keen on it. We debated it out and I couldn't believe it because I always win but.........I lost the argument. In any furniture store they always spruce up the items for customer attraction by placing pretty things around that are not for sale but for display purposes only. I’m not sure why unless Churchill had a similar desk in his office but sitting on top of the desk in the store was a black and white picture of Sir Winston Churchill, a replica model airplane flown in the war and 2 of his books: “The River War” and “Onwards to Victory” and a few other things. We bought the desk and we now refer to it as the Winston Churchill desk. Anyways, Winston is not your average size office desk. It’s so large that the only word that can best describe it is MAMMOTH. So mammoth it takes up the entire room and don't even get me started on the chair that came with it. The chair resembles a throne that is suitable for perhaps the Jolly Green Giant. I rarely ever sit in it because when I do I feel like I’m being swallowed alive by the damn thing. I was sitting at the desk yesterday evening and sister commented I looked like a Polly Pocket doll. 

This is the first time I’ve blogged my Friday entry sitting at a desk. {Unless I’m on vaycay} I always blog sitting with my feet up on the sofa, watching some late night TV followed by a bowl of cereal. Okay there was that one time I had a creme cheese bagel and there was that one other time I had a few Cheetos. Oh speaking of Cheetos, while I was paying for my DVD at Best Buy, correction frigging Best Buy, near the counter was a display stand selling “Cyber-Clean.” Have you seen the infomercial for it? Cyber-Clean is the high-tech cleaning compound. I decided to buy it. When I need to clean my keyboard I usually get out my can of Dust Destroyer and blast the dirt away. Curious to see if the infomercial was accurate, the other day I opened up a bag of Cheetos and took out a single orange stick, ate it and then purposely rubbed my fingers together to allow the orange residue to fall in between the keys. What do you know.....it worked.

******** 

My loyal and dear readers it’s finally FRIDAY! I’m looking forward to this weekend. Why? Because I’m planning on having an “eat me, drink me” kind of weekend, oh yeah. Tim Burton’s “Alice In Wonderland” starring Johnny Depp opens today. What did you think I was talking about, hmm? Naughty, naughty if you were thinking something else.

Whatever your plans are have a magnificent weekend. -x

XOXOXOXO,
Cocaine Princess