All posts by Claire

About Claire

Claire is an Information Assistant at Vaughan Public Libraries. Avid cooker, concertgoer, coffee drinker, TV and movie watcher, washi tape enthusiast, and unabashed fan of romance in all its varieties (even Hallmark movies).  |  Meet the team

Documentaries with Depth

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Movie-poster-for-Kedi-documentary-on-Kanopy

I am not so deluded as to think that the majority of people turn to a nice, juicy, critical analysis of a real-life topic in the form of a full-length film on a Friday night. I’m probably in the (very cool, very sophisticated) minority with my love of a good documentary. It’s pretty rare for me to find someone who shares my appreciation for a good talking head. (Not to be confused with the iconic David Byrne band). I have a friend who is my twin in many ways. In fact, we refer to each other as “my twin.” We once spent a night eating tacos, playing Dance, Dance, Revolution, and watching a cult documentary. The classic documentary structure is so ingrained in us that we don’t even notice it anymore. The lower thirds, the montages, the expert talking heads/family members/witnesses/celebrities. Of course, some documentaries do it better than others. The choice of subject is important, to start with. The ones that captivate my attention foray into a completely unexplored topic. Sure, I’ll catch the odd true crime documentary that’s trodding over familiar territory, but those ones have their own, unique appeal. In general, I want to know something I’ve never known before. The following documentaries are in our physical collection or we provide access to them through the Kanopy streaming app. They might not be the most flashy or spectacle-driven media in existence, but if you give one a chance, it might just prompt you to do your own deep dive into the granular detail of reality.

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New York’s Younger Cousin in Film

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Still-from-Serendipity-movie
IMDb

Toronto is perched atop a deep seam of film lore. As you probably know, it’s a city that stands in for other cities. The historic streets coupled with bright, piercing skyscrapers provide a versatile backdrop for all sorts of productions — period and modern alike. Talking with my fellow HOTS Blog team member Royce the other day helped me come up with the idea for this blog post. So, Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls. Wait. One sec. Let me try that again. Let’s explore Toronto’s history of film production, taking a tour of the spots that are now famous for their inclusion in film and TV. Starting with Serendipity. I have warm, fuzzy memories and the softest of spots for this 2001 rom-com starring Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack (who coincidentally has a distinctly mullet-like hairdo in this movie). When it premiered, 9/11 had just happened, so it was one of the films that ended up using CGI to remove the Twin Towers after its initial release. The film’s commercial success was affected as well, as people avoided crowded, public places in the aftermath of the attack. It developed a following in the years after, though. Now, it seems to regularly make the cable rounds on weekend evenings, enticing viewers with the promise of well-intentioned twee. And, I mean, Eugene Levy is in it. According to Good Housekeeping, the elevator scene where the pair test whether they are fated to be a couple was actually filmed at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel downtown, not the Waldorf Astoria in New York. Toronto is always pretending to be New York. The latter is like an older cousin who lets you borrow their ID to get into a bar. The reviews for this movie are not great, with a 58% on the Tomatometer. Sometimes you wonder if critics are affected by their moods when they review a film. I understand this kind of thing is not for everyone, but even Ebert wasn’t won over by the combined charisma of two Hollywood stalwarts. I don’t get it. It’s an incredibly light story about two people that have a compulsion toward self-sabotage. (Don’t worry about fate. Ever. Especially when it comes to romance. Life decisions should never be made by an amorphous, hypothetical concept. They should be made by people. Okay, I’m off my soap box now.) To be honest, the most winning element of this movie might be the way it romanticizes New York — an almost otherworldly metropolis with a sheen of fictionality to it. They did film in Toronto, but there’s plenty of shots of the city that never sleeps.

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How I Got My Cooking Groove Back: Part Two

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Cover-image-for-So-Easy-So-Good-cookbook-by-Kylie-Sakaida

Hello again, dear readers, and welcome to part deux of my series on getting back in the cooking groove. I’m not going to lie to you, folks. I don’t cook dinner every night. I marvel at those who do, but I’ve definitely stepped up my cooking/baking game — thanks in no small part to Kylie Sakaida, the author of So Easy, So Good. A registered dietician putting an emphasis on nutritional information literacy, her recipes and tips are evidence-based recommendations for quick, easy, nutritious and delicious meals. A lot of cookbook writers make those claims, but Sakaida actually delivers on those promises. I first came across her on YouTube shorts (the algorithm got it right for once). She has a clear-headed awareness of the reasons why so many of us struggle to cook every night, often citing her own experiences. Her YouTube channel and cookbook make things easier for us often hapless home cooks. I’ve been on a mission to cook several of her dishes, and I’ve made quite a few! I really enjoyed her mason jar soup method. It’s the kind of meal prep that doesn’t feel like meal prep because it’s so quick. You just choose whichever combination of ingredients you’re feeling that day (selecting from multiple recipes in the book), set up your containers (mason jars or glass containers if you don’t have enough), and follow her instructions for layering the components. When you’re ready to eat, you boil the kettle and fill them up. Just wait ten minutes, and then lunch is served. Sakaida suggests using vermicelli noodles, which cook in a flash. The ones I made with miso paste, edamame beans, mushrooms, tofu, carrot, ginger, soy sauce, and vegetable bouillon were yummy. Another extremely convenient method Sakaida suggests is the all-in-one rice cooker meal. It’s such a quick way to make a tasty meal, and the rice cooker does everything for you. The only thing I would suggest is not to overfill the rice cooker. If there’s too much in there, the sensor tends to malfunction, and it thinks it’s done before it actually is. I’ve made a great version with edamame, tofu, bok choy, soy sauce, rice, carrot, mirin, garlic, and sriracha, but there are so many versions of this you could do. The first time I saw her make crispy chickpeas, I knew I wanted to try them. She eats them with popcorn to make the movie snack more filling, fibre-packed, and protein-rich. These are so yummy. I have yet to actually try them with popcorn, but it’s on my to-do list. The cottage cheese dip in her book is delicious as well. It’s such a good alternative to mayo-based dips, and it has protein. I love it with pita chips, ritz crackers, and vegetable crudités. The ritz crackers aren’t so healthy, but it’s all about balance, right?

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