Simple coffee: The beautiful Chemex
Yet again, thanks to Boing Boing and it's awesome power to expose the most amazing things in the world, I've gained another instrument in my coffee arsenal: The Chemex brewer.
A generous gift from a friend, who had a tip from someone who watches me gaze over the Intelligentsia website with a sense of awe and desire, I received the pot, along with a couple boxes of filters a couple months ago, and it has become my exclusive brewing method ever since.
The coffee it makes is very similar to the "clean" brew that the vacuum/siphon pot makes, except it's virtually free of any sort of bitterness or acidity. So much so, that it's far to easy to gulp down an entire pot... and amazingly, if you let the coffee sit in the fridge, when you go back to warm up a cup, it still is free of any bitterness.
It's almost as demanding as the vacuum pot; there's a multi-step process of starting the "bloom" before manually pouring your hot water on the grounds, and a very careful pouring method that must be observed.
While everyone raves about the design of the pot (it is quite beautiful really, and I'm partially to the vintage "wooden collar" style), the nature of the coffee is truly sculpted by the special Chemex filters. It's a square filter folded down into a cone shape, and is made of a specially treated paper much heavier than your usual filter.
It's a pretty common theory amongst baristas and most hard-core lovers of the bean that any form of espresso, alongside steaming milk, is something best left to the professionals who pour thousands of cappuccinos and lattes a week. They say, don't bother with your home machines... they might pay themselves off in a few years (if you got a decent one), but you should really stop drinking your lousy home capps and leave it to the experts.
So while I agree, it's also interesting to note that most decent cafes won't brew "drip" coffee, just for the fact that it's hard to keep it from going stale in a matter of a year or so. It seems a lot easier now to get a French Press to go, or let an expert like Sam James make you a vacuum pot of coffee (which if you do it yourself, can be pretty hit-or-miss sometimes).
That's what makes the Chemex pretty cool; this is the simple, affordable instrument that allows you to make coffee like the experts do (as long as you are grinding up your freshly roasted beans, natch). For example, when Toronto Star food writer Corey Mintz had Stumptown Coffee roaster Duane Sorenson over for a meal, he brought a Chemex with him.
So while I'm not a coffee expert by any means, it pleases me to know I'm not too far off the mark of perfection with my usual morning cup.
Want to get inspired? Check out the most high-energy coffee brewing how-to video you'll ever see here.
Previously, my post about the siphon method.
Put Yr Heart Into It 042
This week's podcast features music by Cold War Kids, the Schomberg Fair, the Editors, the Constantines, Forest City Lovers, Jookabox, Evening Hymns, Postdata, Sufjan Stevens.
- Listen: Put Yr Heart Into It 042
The last decade (2000-2009): Life and a list
Ten years.
Ten years ago, I was halfway through my first year at Queen's University in Kingston, making some of the best friends of my life and listening to some amazing music. One summer in British Columbia and two in Kingston later, I fell in love and graduated. Then I got engaged. After spending a depressing summer realizing I had no plans beyond university, I enrolled in the e-Journalism program at Loyalist College in Belleville. The instructors were amazing and inspiring, but most of the class were total petty jerks. I wrote for Tinymixtapes.com and interviewed the Arcade Fire in a parking lot outside Clark Hall Pub. I worked at Radioshack. Totally broke, I managed to "win" a trip to Abu Dhabi (with a pitstop in Amersterdam). I did an internship with CTV.ca news (never went back to Loyalist for graduation), got married, and earned a full-on job with the site. Moved into first Toronto apartment at Denison and Queen. Took first trip to Chicago.
Wrote for Wavelengthtoronto.com. Worked lots of afternoons. I put on 25 pounds. I finally settled in Toronto with Grace Toronto Church and again made more life-long friends. "So Wonderful" from the "Silver Speakers EP" gets played on CBCRadio3. I got off the afternoon shift, still working with CTV.ca. Moved to second apartment in Toronto on Danforth East. Record full-length "Streetlights and Stars" album in my bedroom. More tracks played on CBCRadio3. Lots of gigs. Take first trip to New York City. I'm diagnosed with chronic anxiety and put on another 25. Start taking Strattera. I started smoking heavily. Stopped taking Strattera. Buy TFC season tickets. Slowly work on paying off debt (unsuccessfully). Wife goes on sick leave. I put on another 30. Father-in-law passes away suddenly.
New workplace (same job) on Queen Street. Quit smoking. Silver Speakers perform at the Horseshoe Tavern. Begin to suffer most intense depression of my life. Start taking Wellbutrin. Quit drinking. Stop leading worship at Grace Toronto. Get treated for acute sleep apnea. Lost 20 pounds. Wife still sick. Still deep in school debt and wasting money on slick interior design objects. Eventual home ownership still looks unlikely, with baby plans also pushed back.
Overall, my outlook is far less hopeful and optimistic than 10 years ago, but I'm working on that.
And somewhere along the way in the last year I listened to a lot of music. Some of it life-changing, some not. A pile of old stuff (Smiths, Cure, Rolling Stones), and an even larger pile of new music that journeyed with me. Here's the list of my favourite albums that for better or worse, will always remind me of this decade:
- The '59 Sound – The Gaslight Anthem
- Set Yourself On Fire – Stars
- Heartbreaker – Ryan Adams
- Broken Social Scene - Broken Social Scene
- Seven Swans - Sufjan Stevens
- Good News for People Who Love Bad News - Modest Mouse
- Alligator - The National
- Funeral – Arcade Fire
- () – Sigur Ros
- Is This It – The Strokes
- The Life of the World to Come - The Mountain Goats
- Control - Pedro the Lion
- Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots - The Flaming Lips
- Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie
- Kid A - Radiohead
- Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven - Godspeed You! Black Emperor
- A Mountain is a Mouth - Bruce Peninsula
- Things We Lost in the Fire - Low
- Apologies to the Queen Mary - Wolf Parade
- Turn on the Bright Lights - Interpol
- Superwolf - Bonnie "Prince" Billy
- In Deference to a Broken Back - Daredevil Christopher Wright
- You Were Here - Sarah Harmer
- No Cities Left - The Dears
- Skyscraper National Park - Hayden
- Mogwai - Rock Action
- Mogwai - O Father My Father
- Good Morning Beautiful - By Divine Right
- Young Adults Against Suicide - Ninja High School
- Double Suicide - Sandro Perri
- Diableros - You Can't Break the Strings on our Olympic Hearts
- At the Drive In - Relationship of Command
- Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium
- Final Fantasy - Has a Good Home
Katie Stelmanis live, “acoustic,” at the Bloor-Gladstone Library
With her record, "Join Us," being nearly entirely composed of electronic sounds, I was surprised to see Katie Stelmanis perform solo without any backing tracks at the "Make Some Noise" event Friday night. Her voice (sometimes tweaked by chorus) rose and reflected off the new library's walls and ceilings, creating a vast and powerful sound. Despite being a little awkward in the strange (and bright) space, Stelmanis was gracious and warm, even giving in to the crowd's demands of an encore ("I Will Always Love You") despite not knowing any of the words besides the chorus. I wish I had a chance to meet whoever was taping the show... this is one I'd love to get a copy of. I'll remember this show when she's headlining Massey Hall in a few years.
- Video: Join Us
In Ontario’s Royal City: Guelph and one of the province’s best bed and breakfast joints
After numerous trips to Kingston as our go-to "out of town" trip, we decided to try something totally different this week, and head west... to Guelph. Lured by the best looking google result for "ontario romantic hotel jacuzzi" (once somebody gets their mind set on something...), we settled on the Norfolk Guest House (check their site for photos).
I've stayed at a few Bed and Breakfast places, mostly awesome, and one horrible one (Hello "A Pillow and Toast" in Niagara-on-the-Lake, you are the horrible one... two single beds pushed together do not make a king), and I would put "Norfolk Guest House" in the AWESOME side of the scale.
Like any B&B, staying at a place like Norfolk is a little pricier than a regular hotel; but when you factor in things like breakfast, personal service and a unique experience, places like this one shine, especially in terms of value. We ended up staying in their "Grandview" suite, which came with a queen sized bed, jacuzzi hot-tub, "custom" shower w/ multiple heads, separate office, usual TV & DVD player, fireplace, available internet, and a wrap-around balcony. It was seriously nice.
Janet, the owner and operator of the house, was very friendly and very enthusiastic about Norfolk: you can tell from her passion that she's in it for professional service, and not a retirement hobby. She gave us great suggestions for eating in Guelph, and was very helpful whenever we had questions, and has elegantly decorated the entire place.
Despite our many picky food requirements, breakfast was great, and served at a table spread with a subtle jungle theme (cheetah plate, leather ostrich place-mats). Personally, I'm not a fan of eating breakfast with strangers, but the table at Norfolk was big, so when others joined us, we didn't feel like our space was invaded.
Because I'm suspicious of any overtly glowing review, I'll mention a couple things that I didn't like. We spent a lot of time in the room, and while it was housed in a gorgeous antique wardrobe, the flat-screen TV could have been larger, and I would have liked to have had proper HD in the room. There were lots of strange "signs" all over the place, explaining every light switch and other functions, which while I'm sure prevents having to explain them all the time, detract from the overall classiness... especially when the most confusing thing, turning on the fireplace, had no "guide."
As for the city of Guelph... it's a small campus town. It's not very large, but it has a quaint little downtown core that's within a 10 minute walk of Norfolk, and can be traversed in about 15 minutes. There's a large amount of bars on MacDonell street and the area around it... Jimmy Jazz is the notable rock club, but your typical college circuit bands pass through many of the core's other venues.
Sadly, some of the places I've heard about before and went to check out, like the "Daydream Nation" record store seems to be long gone, as well as a few other places, which look like they have been replaced by much more upscale places.
However, my own highlights while visiting Guelph included:
- Bin 23, hands down the best restaurant in Guelph. The owner, Gus, is extremely friendly and serves up a well-rounded, fresh menu with a strong local flavour. If I was in the area again, I'll go back.
- Planet Bean Coffee, which I assumed would be teeming with student life, but wasn't, made great coffee they roasted in-house, and had some awesome merch for sale, including ceramic mugs with the shop's logo. In my opinion, the only place to get coffee in you're in Guelph.
- The Soccer Fanatic, a well-stocked store with everything football related you could ever want. Jerseys, flags, keychains, totebags, mugs, pins, plush Manchester United sneakers, everything. I knew when I saw the custom stain-glass TFC logo in the window that I would find some kindred spirits inside. The stained-glass logo wasn't for sale, but I would imagine if you wanted to procure one for yourself, they could put you in touch with it's creator.
- This antique/curio store that opened a few weeks ago had just incredible objects, mostly toy-focused, but also had lots of outdoorsy items procured from estate sales. I picked up a couple things for a great deal, which I'll blog about in the future... but a couple things I didn't get but still found awesome was a vintage Granada fake SG and amp set (only 200 bucks!), a vintage Gibson electric lap steel (no amp, but a steal at 450), screen printing blocks from a funeral home (morbid, but awesome), and lots of cool x-rays. I would do a road trip to Guelph next summer just to check this place out again, a lot of their stuff matches our light industrial/messy apartment style.
- We had another dinner at the Albion hotel, which was a little overpriced for it's decent pubfood, but the atmosphere was nice and comfortable, very worthy of some hang time.
As for other things we never got around to, we never did get to have a decent look around the Bookshelf Cafe and Cinema, or eat at restaurants that also sound amazing, like Ein-stein's Cafe, Other Brothers, Diana's Downtown, Bistro Six and the Red Brick Cafe.
Because the weather was lousy when we were in town, we took a lot of cabs back and forth between downtown and the Norfolk, but each trip was only around 5 bucks, which wasn't bad. If you found yourself in Guelph, don't bother waiting for a cab on the street... just call. They'll come quickly.
Overall, I would describe Guelph as the kind of place Belleville could be if it really wanted to. If Belleville cleaned up it's downtown core (ie maybe moving the strip club more than 20 meters away from downtown city hall and farmers market), then a Guelph-type potential might be in it's grasp.
So that's about all I have to say about Guelph. If you're looking to take a short vacation outside of the city, I can't recommend the Norfolk highly enough (it even has online booking!!) as a great place to stay, with a handful of interesting options in the city to keep you entertained.
Put Yr Heart Into It 041
This week's podcast features tracks by my favourite "techno" artist CFCF, Think About Life, Tuneyards, that "Stillness is a move" cover, Drake, Bass Lions, rare solo David Bazan, Toronto band Octoberman, a new track from the just released Do Make Say Think record "Other Truths" and Etaoin Shrdlu.
- Listen: Put Yr Heart Into It 041
Does Larry fail God’s challenge in “A Serious Man”?
The Coen brothers have returned with another stellar film, "A Serious Man," following their two previous releases, "No Country for Old Men" and the celeb-packed "Burn After Reading." This film, set in a 1960's Minneapolis suburb featuring the most gorgeous mid-century modern furniture ever, follows the life of Larry, which goes from okay to mortally damned.
If you want to read the entire plot of the film, go check out it's wikipedia page. It's complicated, dense and somewhat jarring... and like what many reviews say, if you're not Jewish, you're going to miss out on a massive swath of humour and meaning.
Despite what I've read about the film, some things continue to puzzle me, and still haven't found a decent explanation for.
1. "A Serious Man" is loosely based on the book of Job, a story about a man who is caught up in at bet of sorts between God and the Devil. Job looses everything, and despite the council he receives from his friends, and despite the bitterness and pain he feels, he does not turn away from God. So to me, it looks like Larry is Job, losing his family and his possessions and his health... simple. I'm still torn on the role of the rabbis, they are either Job's friends or God himself in person form... if they are his friends, they are offering him useless advice that he doesn't really take, or if they are God, he is asking them serious questions and not getting much of a response. Either way, I'm okay with that reading.
2. The ending. When Larry finally changes the grade to C- instead of F, within minutes he gets the urgent call from his doctor, and his son is moments away from being ripped out of the ground by a tornado. On one hand, this could be the continuing of Larry's trials, or the way I see it as, which Larry actually gives up on God and living a "serious" and honest life, and changes the grade. Immediately after he changes the grade, God's wrath manifests itself physically in his body and as a tornado, about to destroy his only son. Harsh.
3. The prologue. I admit that about 5 minutes into this, I was wondering if I had stumbled into the wrong theatre. In a way, it seems pretty simple. The visitor isn't defined as being an evil spirit or a regular person (he's listed as "?" in the credits), which works on the same principles of the theory relayed later in the film about Schrodinger's cat.
Which leads to Larry's massive physics diagrams about how you can specifically explain why you can't actually know anything (and still be responsible for it). I think for a lot of religious people, Christians included, that from a certain philosophical standpoint, an unknowable deity or God cannot be rationally explained. It seems like a straightforward idea, and I like how it's presented in "A Serious Man."
If you have any ideas about the film, please share them... I'd love to hear it. It's going to be a shame that I'll likely have to wait until after Oscar season before anyone wants to talk about this I guessing.
You know what, ‘Fireproof,’ you’re alright by me
Like most of my urban dwelling brethren, I'm pretty cut off from most mainstream Christian culture, especially culture born waaaay south of the border. Sure, downtown we love our Sufjan Stevens and Thrices, but most of the younger, young-ish and young-at-heart people I know are not really going to perk up when someone mentions "The Well."
I don't think it's necessarily an attitude thing, nor a "we're more sophisticated" type thing either... downtown, churches are more likely to be "plants," store-fronts, locals, stuffy, alternative or traditional. Like our city, the church presence is very diverse.
But despite all that diversity, there's not much in the way of Christian media in the core; there are hardly any "Christian" radio stations, there's no "Michaels" (but we do have our Crux!), and most of all, we don't have any mega-churches. And without that "large-group" environment, a lot of content, good and bad, passes on undetected. I think that easily explains why Rob Bell's previous visit to Toronto was (by my impression) almost entirely attended by out-of-town 905ers and beyond.
OK, I'm way off topic here and I'm not planning on peeling back that thought any further for now.
So there's this movie, "Fireproof," which most people won't look twice at, except for the fact that it's probably the most popular, mainstream "Christian" movie today. Starring everyone's favourite Evangelical punching bag, Kirk Cameron (yep, from "Growing Pains"), who plays a firefighter with a very Christian name, the very cheesy flick follows him as he takes on a "Love Dare" while trying to save his marriage.
"Rescue Me" it ain't.
With a tag line of "Never Leave Your Partner Behind" (which you will of course hear in reference to fighting fires and in marriage), I won't harp on the film too much, because it only cost half a million dollars to produce, and it ended up grossing over 33 million since its release last year.
Like I said before, it's very cheesy, and at times the production can be amateur, but about halfway through the flick, it seems to get i'ts act together and become a real movie. Sure, it keeps mucking up it's "Marriage is Fireproof" theme: love is a spark, fire threatens to burn your marriage down, lighting a fire = rekindling a romance; but despite my criticisms there, I will have to admit that this movie does have a great message.
At the heart of the film, it's quite literally a lesson in love; there's a "Love Dare" that Caleb takes, and yep, you can get a version of the love dare in book form. There's speeches and long talks that feel like they've been born from a pulpit, and when Caleb's dad discovers his unbelieving son lives near an old Christian summer camp, complete with firepit and wooden cross, you know that somebody's going to be kneeling in front of it by the end of the movie. Even if they have a horrible "Georgia" accent (ahem, Cameron).
Despite my cynic attitude, there's lots of things I enjoyed about the movie: It's very "south," with lots of drawl and male posturing, which at once feels real and down to earth, all the actors are more or less non-actors, which adds to the sincerity (Caleb's mother actually looks like she could be someone's mother. Much love to Ken Bevel as well, he was the best and most prominent non-actor in the movie, and he totally rocked it), and sometimes I wonder if all the cheesiness is intentional: giving couples who initially watch the movie together something to make fun of before they are truly bombarded by the sincere gospel message presented here.
Looking over the special features on the DVD, it gave me an extra appreciation that I wouldn't have gotten just from the film itself. The outtakes show just how much fun they had shooting this mostly-depressing film, the moments where cast and crew pray before shooting every day is totally inspiring, and to hear about why the filmmakers took on this project were enlightening (basically they feel like marriage is under attack... however, it looks like they're not going anywhere near the "gay marriage" issue here).
A point they make in the special features that I really appreciate, is that this is a film you don't often see: It looks at people's lives after they live "happily ever after" and before something "tragic and life changing" happens. It's when the monotony of day to day life and unfulfilled dreams take root, and to the film's credit, I applaud it for taking a realistic look at what that life experience is like.
So, if you're a Christian, in a "Christian" marriage, or even have friends who are receptive to the gospel and maybe even having some marriage troubles, I would suggest "Fireproof" is worth a watch.
Other Interesting notes:
- Kirk Cameron, in lieu of payment, donated his paycheck to his favourite charity, Camp Firefly
- From what I can tell, pretty much everyone involved in the film is a volunteer
- Apparently Kirk Cameron refuses to kiss any other woman, even on screen, so in Fireproof, when his character does kiss his wife, its Kirks wife dressed up as the main character
- Every location the film shot at was provided without payment required
- Every "house" scene was shot in the same house
Put Yr Heart Into It 040
Hey look, it's the mannequin outside the old stocking/whatever it was store at Queen and Sherbourne. At least, that's where it used to be. With the influx of new, hip stores in the stretch (Upsidedive, that flower store), I guess it was time to pull up and move on. I'll still be shocked to see this intersection truly gentrified. Anyways, this week's podcast has not theme, just some cool songs, featuring tracks by: The Diableros, The Balconies, Drive Faster, Julian Casablancas, Hot Chip & Peter Gabriel, Winter Gloves, Carl Sagan & Stephen Hawking, Graham Wright, Slow Down Molasses, Fox Jaws, Get Up Kids, Deer Tick and Spiritualized.
Web 2.0
Christian Life
Silver Speakers
Movies watched, reviewed.
Archives
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- January 2009
Things to do in Belleville: Go to Starbucks and Chapters
Never been to this Starbucks before? Well here's all you need to know: Never, under any circumstances, should you order anything besides coffee or tea. You'll look like a pompous so-and-so from Rednersville Road, slumming it in the only part of town you consider classy (here's a hint: it's not)... or you'll look like the too-cool-for-school yuppie taking refuge in a somewhat urban and hip locale (again, not).
At Starbucks, in general, you are going to get ripped off. The coffee is too expensive, and the tea is too expensive (that's okay, because you are still getting a very highly caffeinated beverage that doesn't totally taste like sewer water). But don't ever order any espresso based drinks, because those beans in the back room taste like they are older than dirt, and the under-trained, overworked "baristas" behind the counter have no idea what they are doing.... don't waste your money on that too short shot of espresso in half warm milk/half bubble bath foamed milk.
And were you planning on getting something "mocha" or "frapped" in it? Spend the 6 bucks at Dairy Queen and just get yourself a milkshake... because you are not getting coffee when you order that business, you are getting desert.
So with that said, grab yourself a nice hot cup of coffee, add your fixings, and head over into Chapters. Belleville's Chapters is pretty average in the chain of stores, but for Belleville, has a pretty extensive magazine collection. There's you usual fashion mags, craft mags, "men's" mags, and honestly, and entire row dedicated to automobile magazines. Grab whatever you like, and sit down on a window ledge that serves nicely as a bench to have a little browse. If none are available in the front of the store, head over the West side window, where there's another great little window ledge to sit.
Did I mention the entire row dedicated to automobile magazines?
Now, you may be tempted to bring a few magazines into the Starbucks for a little perusing. Shortly after the Belleville Starbucks opened in 1999, this was all the rage. Of course, people started spilling their 4 dollar "lattes" all over the merchandise, and that practice was soon outlawed. But hey, it's Starbucks, and you should try your luck anyways.
Mind you, you'll have to see if there's any tables actually available. There's usually a handful of Loyalist College students working away on their laptops, doing important work like updating their Myspace profiles, as well as little groups of women who seem to take up the rest. Be warned that if you bring your own book and try to read in one of the comfy chairs, some nice-seeming person will sit in the one next to you, and will soon begin to unfurl their impeccable weirdoness upon you. At least their bathrooms are spacious!
Have I made Starbucks and Chapters in Belleville sound terrible? It really isn't that bad. In all honestly, it's the nicest place you can spend an hour or two in town, especially when you combine it with a lap or two of the Quinte Mall next door. Or if you want to go out at night and avoid the bars like "Matt and Joes" or "Little Texas," this is really your only after 7pm option.
One last Starbucks and Chapters in Belleville tip: If you are just stopping in to grab a coffee all quick like, the locals seem to be okay with just half pulling up into the curb out front, or parking on the painted hash-marks beside the handicapped access slots (not in the slots, just beside them, more or less in traffic). I don't necessarily condone this, but you should at least know.
Enjoy your stay in Belleville, and stay tuned for more helpful advice!