Cat Jahnke Mews » Food

Cat In “Cowtown”

Cat Jahnke — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 08:53:02 +0000

I’ve got a benefit show coming up in Saskatoon and the folks at Canadian Tire have been generous enough to donate a prize of our choice to the silent auction. While driving through Alberta today, we spied one of their locations and decided to do some scouting. I spent some serious time strolling their aisles, trying to pick out a desirable gift within the budget. As if it’s not hard enough to choose something for someone you know; imagine how hard it is to guess the interest of a couple hundred strangers!

I think we’re going to go with a coffeemaker and pair it with the gift basket being donated by McQuarries Coffee. Holy cow! If you’re in the Saskatoon area and you have an afternoon to kill, go visit McQuarries. When I was a little girl I never hesitated to stop and smell those ground coffee beans. While I’ve never been a drinker of the stuff, I’ve been an avid smeller for years!

After making our decision, we continued on our path to Calgary, dropped our gear off at the hotel and found a sushi restaurant on 11th ave (despite Google giving us incorrect instructions). What a great place! Check out Uptown Sushi for cheap but delicious food and great atmosphere: a huge bowl of Edamame, the best tasting yam tempura I’ve ever had, and a beautiful décor. To cap it off, the woman at the till gave me an interesting wire photo holder… just because! I’ll have to take a picture of it to post here. Thank you Uptown Sushi!!

Meanwhile, back at the inn… Ah, (certain chain of) hotels! You have yet to impress me. In fact, you have yet to host me without complaint. I’m open-minded however and would ADORE having this track record smashed. I’m currently lying in a pretty comfy bed, so you’ve got some points right off the hop. The temperature’s under control, the bathroom was clean, the front desk staff was courteous, and there’s no horrific aroma emanating from some indiscernible corner of the room. Hmm… I hope you prove me wrong!

Tomorrow I start another weekend with the Signature’s Craft Sales. If you’re in the Calgary area, come on down to the Calgary Stampede Roundup Centre. With the abundance of talent that I see at these events, if you do brave the parking fee and come on by, I promise that you will see at least one amazing thing during your visit.

A demain!

Thank Goodness For Medicine… Hat

Cat Jahnke — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:05:18 +0000

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank goodness for my smallness. My entire sleep allotment for this day was doled out in two hour increments in a car on the number one highway. Perhaps I’ve already discussed this in a previous blog. I don’t care; I’m freaking grateful that I can sleep comfortably in a bucket seat!

We’re billotted with one of the town doctors here in Medicine Hat. Good thing too because I wanted a second opinion about a burn I recently acquired using faulty oven mitts. (Check your oven mitts people!) I realized after the show that during my last visit I also consulted with him about an injury I’d sustained in the very same place!

I think my right index finger is jinxed!

Thanks to the Prickly Pear for the great evening and for the YUMMY EGG SALAD SANDWICH!!!

Wabigoon – Green Achers – PB & John

Cat Jahnke — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 09:30:07 +0000

I remember reading a Farley Mowat book in which he discusses his switch from a regular sleep schedule to one more in tune with the wolves he was studying. Instead of the usual 8 hours straight, his sleep allotment came in much smaller increments spaced throughout the day. This is much how Darren and I survive in the days leading up to a long tour, although the biggest difference between Mowat and me is that I can usually only fit in one nap in a 24-hour cycle.

I can’t believe how much there is to do!! Besides just packing clothes and gear, we had to coordinate merch, keep the promotion in motion, clean the house for our house-sitter… Darren even took time to remove the sticky gunk left behind on my guitar case after a run-in with some duct tape. Peanut butter works like a charm! A messy, unappetizing, “may contain traces of nuts” charm!

We didn’t have time to consume food ourselves, but we had to make sure the guitar case was fed.

So while the case ate like a king all out of Wonder Bread, I prepared an all-day buffet equally as nourishing:

Part of this complete breakfast!

By the end of the day I was so tired that I just barely remember giggling while describing a t-shirt caption idea. I will share it here knowing that it makes absolutely no sense, but I just want to prove my exhaustion:

It supposed to say “Oops!” but there’s an “O” missing. This was side-splititngly funny to me at 4 am. I don’t think you’d truly grasp the hilarity unless you stayed up for 30 hours straight, subsisting only on “baked not fried” crackers, OR if you banged your head really hard. I recommend neither; I’m always up for a laugh, but this one’s just not worth it…

I was so pleased to stop in Wabigoon for my first show of the tour. Thank you for hosting us John! I hope you didn’t mind me grilling you about your job as a “flight medic”. I’m just so fascinated with people who have that kind of information in their head, and those kind of adventures in their past. I wanna learn how to trach someone at 20,000 feet! (Although with my level of aerophobia I think I would find it difficult to wield a scalpel while simultaneously clutching my armrests…)

I Really Totally Hate Being Cold

Cat Jahnke — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 08:30:06 +0000

10/13/07 – Brickhouse, Fernie

Breakfast at the Cycle Inn. Most likely the best fruit salad I’ve ever enjoyed. Golden Raspberries?!

The best view from the slowest fast food joint.

I was finally warm today! Anyone who’s met me along the way so far knows that I just can’t seem to get my core body temperature up. I kept thinking that a chill was a curse, but I know now that it is quite the opposite. Those who have traveled light may be able to relate. Shivering doesn’t necessitate another trip to the laundromat, sweating does. And when one’s wardrobe comes out of a backpack day in and day out, the discomfort of being chilly may be a small price to pay for the comfort of not smelling gross.

Tonight I was told that I spoke well. This is something that I really needed to hear because I recently discovered that no matter how much I protest, I do totally tend to say “really” and “totally” way too often. Isn’t there some strategy to purge such repetition? I think it’s used more commonly to treat a potty mouth. You choose an unusual word to say instead. Any suggestions for something to replace my verbal vices?

Cat @ The Brickhouse – If you squint, it kind of looks like my guitar is floating.
Or that my left hand is REALLY strong…

Our new friends Dave and Paula generously allowed us to squat in their place while we were in Fernie. It was so nice to have a homey place to crash, but I found myself reliving the days in our 400 square foot apartment on River Ave in Winnipeg. We couldn’t go back! How many times per week would it happen that we’d arrive home at 3 in the morning with so much to talk about, but have to shush each other to keep the neighbours happy?

Apartment living is not for the nocturnal!

Too Little Too Late And The Squirrel OR Unworthy Melons And Beef Stew

Cat Jahnke — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 08:23:54 +0000

10/12/07 – Langham, Kaslo

It was a race against the clock to get to the ferry. We won and we lost. We arrived just in time to be the third vehicle in line NOT to get on.

12:37 pm (BC time) and we’ve gone 18.3 km

12:48 pm and we’ve gone 37.3 km

We arrive at the dock at 12:52 pm, a full 8 minutes before the next scheduled departure.

This is the ferry pulling away. There were only two vehicles ahead of us!

At least I got to capture this photo of a cute squirrel while we waited – Completely worth it!!

The greenroom at the Langham!

Stay posted to YouTube for my first live video contribution. I was so stoked that the folks in Kaslo did not disappoint my expectations of a choir. They eagerly supplied some backing vocals and nearly brought tears to my eyes while I sang about unworthy melons and beef stew…

Starving Artist? I Think Not…

Cat Jahnke — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:37:31 +0000

10/3/07 – Redstone, Red Deer

Oh – My – Goodness! I’ve been spoiled. I’ve yet to see Big Night, but the climax of the film seems to be in line with what I’m feeling now. I’ll never have asparagus like that again!

The last supper…

The last dessert…

Close-up of delicious!

Sushi For Breakfast

Cat Jahnke — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 08:34:14 +0000

10/2/07 – Day off, Calgary

Stop the presses and mark your calendars: Darren and I made plans to meet at a restaurant for lunch and it worked out!! We didn’t get lost, there were no plan Bs, and no one was fired. That’s a good lunch date in my books!

It’s kind of strange having sushi for breakfast, but I can never refuse a good avocado roll. Well, unless it’s after I’ve been making them for the last 2 hours, at which point I’ve lost my appetite for sushi entirely… But you can still eat it!

Cat-brand sushi!

Side note: My first taste of sushi was in San Francisco and I hated it. I’d been a vegetarian for several years by then, and it just tasted like fish. I was terrified that I was cheating on my morals. Now I can’t get enough, as long as I’ve got a glass, some ice, and a can of ginger ale to wash it all down.

Big Little Good Luck – Little Big Bad Luck

Cat Jahnke — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 23:41:53 +0000

9/30/07 – Day Off, Calgary

Would you rather have the big luck or the little luck? Big luck: Great job but you always drop things? Or little luck: Crappy relationship but you never miss a green light?

I’m pretty sure I’m blessed with the first. I love what I do. I love my friends. I have a great family. I feel supported and cared for and in the broad sense of it, my life is awesome. BUT, every once in a while I get struck by this strange luck.

Often it involves weather (blizzards coming out of nowhere on the day of an important show, rain following me around) but more recently it has involved the unexpected closure of each and every restaurant I appeal to for nourishment. We got a taste of this in Lloydminster but we chalked in up to a worker shortage. Surely it wasn’t my presence that caused Pizza-73’s number to ceaselessly ring, or the Cheers restaurant to have closed five minutes before we made our final menu decisions. Family Pizza, Boston Pizza, Panago, the list goes on…

We left those coincidences behind us and traveled on to Calgary to enjoy a much needed day off. Our fine hosts Adelee and Rod had prepared a scrumptious meal of stuffed green peppers before remembering that Darren is a picky brat and won’t eat them. No worries, there was a yummy veggie casserole for Plan B. Unfortunately it had mushrooms in it, another delicious food Darren refuses to consume… (Meanwhile Cat’s mouth is salivating profusely just thinking about it!)

So on to Plan C. Indian food from their favorite restaurant, part of their usual Sunday schedule. Ring! Ring! Ring! ad infinitum. Now this is really a waste because it takes me forever to decide what suits my palate at any given moment. After several more unsuccessful attempts, we decide to go with Plan D.

Their favorite Thai place is another restaurant that has served them well in the past. Before making our choices we discuss our previous luck in Lloydminster, joking that our fortune has the power to close down the entire food industry. On the phone again to the Thai place and this time our efforts are rewarded by a recorded message stating that the restaurant will be closed on Sundays until further notice.

???

I love food. I love eating. I love going out to eat amazing food. But I feel it is my duty to report my track record and let potential restaurants decide for themselves whether they would like me to be within 100 feet of their establishment.

SK/AB?

Cat Jahnke — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 09:54:32 +0000

9/27/07 – Ernie’s Coffee House

Darren set up a passenger seat office today. Unfortunately there were no bobble-headed desk trinkets to spruce up the bucket-seat cubicle (if you use that for a band name you better credit me!) but he made do. I was less of a trooper. I’ve got to get me some of these because my eye balls do not like driving directly into the sun.

Darren’s executive office – What a view!

I’m so grateful to venues like Ernie’s Coffee House that take SUCH GOOD CARE of their guests. Corwin, Carrie and 12-year-old Brindin were AWESOME! Brindin showed us the dance moves he’s learning in hiphop class after helping Darren lug in all my heavy gear. We really gave him a workout today!

Little Chloe also entertained the crew during intermission by jamming out a ditty on the piano. I remember fondly the days of my youth when any piano or piano-like object acted as a super magnet! There was little that could keep me from that bench… Chloe also drew me an absolutely awesome drawing which I include here with permission from the artist.

She told me that she’d started tracing my face on the back of the postcard but
was unsatisfied with the work. She also told me that she drew my heart for me…

I’m writing from the living room portion of the Evergreen Room here at the Hospitality Inn. Holy smokes! Jacuzzi, steam shower, plasma screen tvs, bath salts! vanity kits!!! It’s just too bad that I’ll only be here for a total of 12 hours. This place is bigger than my old apartment!

Funky Hospitality Inn logo… I really get a kick out of it!

The Evergreen Room has a self-titled plack! Plaque?
(Then how do you spell cheque?)

I asked the butler to leave the room because he was blocking my shot of our suite.
He joined the maid in the kitchen and later brought us ice cream sundaes in bed.

This place is so fancy that I don’t even know how to use the Do Not Disturb sign.

Seriously though, Lloydminster’s gotta think about getting some late-night food establishments. There was no room service offered at the hotel so we thought we’d get something delivered. It took us an hour of phoning to realize that we’d be better off taking matters into our own hands. But even Boston Pizza’s closed here at 11?! Thank goodness for the stamina of the employees at a Tim Horton’s down the street.

Join us tomorrow when I reveal my ingenious plan to get fit without even trying. This is not a joke. I have a great idea. You’ll wonder why you didn’t think of it before!

Jahnke at the Donkey

Cat Jahnke — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 05:44:44 +0000

Spent the afternoon at a café very similar in feel to the bakery in the film Stranger Than Fiction. It is helmed by a young woman who seemed intent on catering to everyone with the same respect and love, focusing on quality, nourishing, REAL food. The thrift store in the back implied a simple ambiance, but the wireless internet signal was strong and free. If you are in Kamloops, visit Ruth’s Café.

After purchasing a lovely tablecloth to add to my merch display and some persuasively cheap books, we left the coffee shop and headed over to Vernon. We stopped in at the Komasket music festival, checked out the tipis which were to shelter us that evening and met some really really fantastic people (Hello Ryan, Rennae, Sam, Katie, Rio, Laurie, Jason, Ashley, J, Saul, Devaki, + + +). Then we drove into town to play.

Our evening at the Talkin’ Donkey in Vernon began quietly. I was concerned because the show was to start in less than half an hour and the place was empty. Thank goodness I had made the mistake of entering the wrong showtime in my tour binder. In this instance I fought the sand in the hourglass and won! An hour and a half later I began my first set and sang to another fine bunch of folks.

The Extreme Toffee Coffee Donkaccino!

I’m always a little jealous of, and intimidated by, big groups of friends. I’m amazed that a true intimacy can be shared by such a large number of people. Nathan, Tyler and their entire crew made it look so easy, made me think it might be time to leave the hermitage once I return to Winnipeg. Imagine going out every single night of the week! Unfathomable…

Back at Komasket, we finally found the tipi that was set up just for us. The handpainted sign designating our residence was invisible by the light of the moon and I had forgotten the LED light on the keychain in my bag. Luckily Saul came to our rescue and showed us the way.

My tipi had special powers: it was only visible during daylight!
(Check out the ‘C’ in Cat. It comes complete with ears and tail!)

I tried my hardest to appreciate the experience of sleeping under the stars. I had the luxuries of a mattress beneath me and real sheets and blankets on top, but the chill crept in nonetheless and a fear for my vocal chords contaminated what could have otherwise been a really special night. Oddly, despite my numb toes and clenched voice box, I think I had the best sleep I’d yet had on tour.