First there is the issue of cost which can be twice to three times the regular price especially if we are talking meat here. Seasonally you can get some great buys. Last week squash at Loblaws was .89 lb and at the Carrot organic was .99lb with organic Broccoli at $1.99. Both great values.

The other consideration is authenticity. Is it truly organic? With acid rain and all sorts of other pesticides in the air and water run off who can say what gets into a farmers field. Hydroponics might be the safest best. Also, there will also be a small amount of fraud going on out there. Fraud seems to be a fact of life these days.

So if budget is a consideration how do you keep costs in check?
A newscaster on Global Toronto mentioned the Organic Dirty Dozen last week on the air and I went searching the net looking for references to it. Just after making a comment about Global’s in depth reporting she mentioned the Dirty Dozen below and listed only the top 3 items… leaving me searching for the rest… so much for in depth reporting.

These reporters crash markets. They have single handedly crashed the Toronto Real Estate market a number of years back and this week they certainly were doing their best to put RIM and blackberry out of business.

Organic Dirty Dozen

The Dirty-Dozen Foods to Buy Organic
Although there are benefits to buying organic produce, it can be a bit pricey. That’s why nutrition experts recommend going organic for the 12 vegetables and fruits that tend to have the highest levels of pesticides. Avoid conventional versions of these foods and you can lower your pesticide exposure by almost 90 percent, according to the Environmental Working Group.
Here’s a list of the “dirty dozen” that justify going organic:
· apples
· celery
· cherries
· imported grapes
· lettuce
· nectarines
· peaches
· pears
· potatoes
· spinach
· strawberries
· sweet bell peppers
Give it a try and go Organic on the Dirty Dozen to lower your toxic load and keep your food costs in line.

From their facebook page  Toronto Brazilfest

8th Annual Toronto International BrazilFest 2011

In a multicultural city like Toronto — where all summer festivals have something beautiful to offer those who love meeting new cultures — you cannot miss Canada’s Largest Brazilian Cultural Event, the 8th Annual Toronto International BrazilFest 2011.

On Sunday July 24th, 2011 at Earlscourt Park located at St. Clair Ave West and Caledonia Road, all sounds and vibes of this beautiful culture will be showcased with its food, music, dance, crafts and workshops.

The Festival stage will be filled with musicians, dancers and singers that will take you on an exotic trip exploring Brazilian music and celebration without having to leave the heart of Toronto.

This amazing event will also offer the famous Brazilian “Caipirinha,”
Brazil’s national cocktail drink, mixing lime, sugar and Brazilian Pitu Cachaca (Brazilian spirit), a must-try cocktail with a Brazilian flare that will have you enjoying the sounds and dance moves of the Samba. And that’s not all! Come and enjoy some delicious grilled Brazilian “Churrasco” Barbeque, Tropical Juices and baked Brazilian goodies being sold by vendors at the festival.

Each year the festival has grown in size and prestige. Many Brazilians today call Canada home, many of whom are living in the Greater Sunday July 24, 2011
(St. Clair Ave W. & Caledonia Rd )

12 noon – 10 pm

8th Annual BrazilFest Toronto : Festival De Verao/ Brazilian Summer Festival

Performers:

Banda Maria Bonita ( Forro )

Batucada Carioca ( Samba & Batucada )

D Snow ( Diogo Snow ) ( Hip Hop & RnB )

Juliana Caputo Capuleto ( Bossa Nova & MPB Brasil )

Brazil Dance World ( Samba De Gafeira, Forro, Brazilian Zouk )

Toronto Dance Zouk ( Brazilian Zouk & Zouk )

P.O.S.E Dance Troupe ( Samba, Salsa, Bacchata, Contemporary )

Dj Ziko Perieira ( House Music & Brazilian Top 40 )

DJ Marcelo Vital ( Brazil Vital Radio Show ) ( Brazilian MPB & Top 40 )

Tia Betty Santos ( Samba De Raiz – Samba Roots )

Grupo Bossa To Go ( MPB )

Axe Capoeira Toronto ( Capoeira & Afro Rythms )

Kids Zone Area with Rides and “Walk on Water Ball ”

Solar Powered Vehicle – Xof1 “Powere of One” Team

Miss Brasil Canada – Jennifer Silva

Miss Universe Canada 2010 – Elena Semikina

Toronto Argonauts

Undisputed Mixed Martial Arts – Prescilla Tromposky

Hot Air Balloon ride

Maria Lucia Romano Caputo – Traditional Bahiana

12noon – 10 pm

Food Vendors

Hand Crafts

______________________________________________________

8th Annual Toronto International BrazilFest 2011

In a multicultural city like Toronto — where all summer festivals have something beautiful to offer those who love meeting new cultures — you cannot miss Canada’s Largest Brazilian Cultural Event, the 8th Annual Toronto International BrazilFest 2011.

On Sunday July 24th, 2011 at Earlscourt Park located at St. Clair Ave West and Caledonia Road, all sounds and vibes of this beautiful culture will be showcased with its food, music, dance, crafts and workshops.

The Festival stage will be filled with musicians, dancers and singers that will take you on an exotic trip exploring Brazilian music and celebration without having to leave the heart of Toronto.

This amazing event will also offer the famous Brazilian “Caipirinha,”
Brazil’s national cocktail drink, mixing lime, sugar and Brazilian Pitu Cachaca (Brazilian spirit), a must-try cocktail with a Brazilian flare that will have you enjoying the sounds and dance moves of the Samba. And that’s not all! Come and enjoy some delicious grilled Brazilian “Churrasco” Barbeque, Tropical Juices and baked Brazilian goodies being sold by vendors at the festival.

Each year the festival has grown in size and prestige. Many Brazilians today call Canada home, many of whom are living in the Greater Toronto Area. For them, as for many visitors participating and joining in on a yearly basis, the event has become a real and authentic expression and the pride and joy of the Toronto Brazilian Community, celebrating its music, happiness and the unique touch of Brazilian friendship for all.

ABOUT BRAZILFEST
Now in its 8th successful year, Brazilfest is Canada’s largest Brazilian cultural event. Held at Earlscourt Park Toronto, July 24, 2011, from 12:00pm – 10:00 pm, the festival is considered the best outdoor Brazilian Event in Toronto by the Brazilian Top Choice Award Association for 2007,2008 & 2009. People of all ages regularly attend this amazing event to enjoy the spectacular performances while teasing their taste buds with exotic Brazilian foods. Brazilfest is a must-attend event for anyone interested in sharing in the collective heritage and multicultural diversity of Toronto

Brazilfest 2010

The City has a list of pools available to help you keep cool in Toronto at www.toronto.ca/parks/torontofun
There are many instructional classes available for folks who want to learn how to swim , exercise or potentially become a lifeguard.

There are drop in programs such as Swim To Survive, Lane Swims, Family Swims and youth clubs available. Programs run all year round so do check it out and make sure you
Swim weekly this summer to increase your health benefits and to stay cool.

The 28 page full color brochure declaring that the Film Festival is International, Independent and Anti-Niche and looked like it had cost a bomb. IT declares that they put the spotlight on the careers of numerous film makers from all over the world and they exist to rave review of their Audiences.

A good start and quite impressive.

Unfortunately it was downhill from here.

The gentleman who met me to give me my ticket gently mentioned that the films that were published in the impressive program would not be playing that evening.  I assumed he meant one or two of them.  It turned out he meant all of them.  I was rather stunned. 

To his further discredit he actually let it slip that several others had come to collect their tickets at other days and times only to discover the printed program frankly had no meaning.  Their choice of films were not on the being played.  

So, what is the point. My two hours of film enjoyment dwindled down to 30 minutes worth  of films that held no interest to me after which I walked out of the almost empty room.  The other four people in the room a group of friends who had come together walked out right after me. This left the documentary about some punk rock band owner with a troubled life to play to no one.

Wow, they need to get their act together.  This makes the third U.of T. based event I have attended in the last month that was frankly an unmitigated disaster. Apparently they are in their 7^th year of this Film Festival. You would think after 7 years they would have figured something out.

Needles to say I won’t be considering tickets to this venue again.

Kensington is located just to the west of downtown Toronto, bordered by Spadina Avenue, Dundas Street, Bathurst Street and College Street.

Kensington Market was designated as a historical site in 2006.  It is a distinctly multi-cultural neighborhood with all the flavors and stimulation associated with that.

For more information about Toronto’s Kensington Market follow this link

I love garlic.  I was so happy to know that it not only tastes good, but it’s good for your health too!   Hipprocrates knew that garlic was good, and listed it as one of his special treatments.  Modern scientists have discovered that garlic has natural blood thinning properties, can help lower blood pressure, anti-oxident properties that can contribute to your ‘good’ cholesterol, and can even prevent and/or cure some fungus, bacterial, and yeast infections.   Wow!

I can hear you now, “But it STINKS!”.  Yes, garlic does have an odor when ingested, that may linger on your breath. This is caused by it’s high sulfur content that comes out via your lungs.  Some find the odor offensive, others don’t.  If you just want to take a supplement for your health, garlic is available as Kyolic (no smell, but all the benefits!)

I prefer to get my garlic the natural way, through FOOD!  You’d be surprised at the food that has been flavored with garlic … do you think you’d like garlic ice cream?   I’d like to share one of my favorite garlic infused recipes with you..

Nancy’s Garlic Jalapeno Potatoes

6 medium potates, peeled and cut in large chunks

1 Jalapeno pepper, cored and chopped

4 TB minced garlic

Olive Oil or Butter

Salt & Pepper

Put some olive oil or butter in the bottom of a casserole dish, just enough so the potatoes don’t stick.  Sprinkle 1 TB of the garlic in the bottom of the casserole dish.  Mix the potatoes, olive oil (or melted butter), jalapeno pepper and the rest of the garlic in a bowl, until the potatoes are coated well, and the peppers and garlic are well distributed.  Turn into your casserole and salt and pepper well (I like sea salt).   You can either put this in the microwave for about 25 minutes, or Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

I had just had lunch at a yummy Phillipino restaurant on York Mills near Don Mills called Casa Manila. Did I really need to hear this.

Apparently like it or not we all eat approximately 500 grams or so a year of insects. The tomatoes for our salad are apparently graded differently than the tomatoes in cans of tomato soup or spaghetti sauce etc. If tomatoes look like they may have bugs they get thrown in the soup pot.

Makes a very good case in my mind for cooking from scratch and not eating anything out of cans.
The announcer ended by saying that in some cultures shrimp were just considered 10 legged insects.
I didn’t know whether to laugh or wretch. Some lunchtime conversation. I can’t believe that CBC has nothing better to do than to educate us on the eating of bugs.
What is our society coming to. Is this exciting programming?

Before you waive that condition on financing or home inspection here’s what you should do.

While purchasing a home one of the last items many people think about is home insurance.
They just assume they can get insurance and that it will be in a certain price range based on what a friend has told them
Here’s what you should do when you submit an offer on a house.
Find an insurance agent right away and if possible, check what it will cost to obtain insurance as soon as you sign your agreement and before you waive any conditions.
An insurance agent can check the history of claims in the neighbourhood and can let you know about claims for flooding and sewage back-ups or vandalism.
This can greatly affect the insurance rate on the home you want to purchase in a particular neighbourhood. Rates do vary according to area.
Low lieing areas that tend to flooded basements have higher rates.
This is important information that any buyer should have before deciding to waive their conditions and complete the deal.

Also things like knob and tube wiring greatly affect your insurance rate or if you can even get insurance as some companies are not keen to insure older downtown Toronto homes with original wiring.

If you follow this simple quick tip & buy with your head instead of your heart, chances are you’ll get the house you want at a price you can afford, with no unwanted surprises later.

Safety measures in your Toronto home are important. They can save you or your family and pets lives. Toronto building codes  are specific as to the requirements for your home or  apartment. Follow these tips and it should go a long way to keeping you safe in your home.

1/Smoke alarms should be mounted on the ceiling in the centre of the room, hall or stairway.
This is because smoke tends to travel along the ceiling not along the walls.
2/ Don’t install the alarm close to doors or windows.
3/Don’t install your alarm near an air register, fan or vent
4/Keep alarms at least two feet from any corner
5/ If your alarm is connected to the wiring system of the house, always use a qualified electrician to do the install and check the alarm after installation is complete.
Resting ( recommended monthly)
Test your alarm by pressing the test button monthly
Change your batteries annually, even though battery operated devices warn you when they need to be changed.
Smoking
Smoking is a leading cause of house fires. So consider this.
Smoke outside
Dispose of your cigarette butt in a safe manner, such as a can of water or sand.
Candles
Home Fires caused by candles have doubled over the last decade. Be mindful. There are some serious risks.
Don’t put candles near drafts or vents
Trim the which, prior to using a candle
Make sure candles are placed on sturdy, flat surface
Keep candles out of reach of children and pets… especially wagging tales.
Roof
Trim any over-hanging branches that could spread a fire to and from your roof
Eavestroughs and gutters should be cleared regularly to avoid any flammable build-up of leaves and other materials.