h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Caribou, the beast lives in Canada. In Quebec City for the winter carnival (usually in Feb) many vendors sell "caribou" on the street. This is to "warm" you up - being red wine fortified with alcohol, to drink on the run, or to fill your hollow drinking cane with, while you are being festive. The extra alcohol will stop it freezing if it drops to -30oC, quite probable at that time of year.

Dudemeister, is it any good for hangovers on the day after Christmas?

so is just staying in bed

As a general anaesthetic perhaps. The Carnaval is celebrated in Quebec as Carnival in the Carribean, Brazil, etc. is, except it is bloody freezing. In fact since December started it will most likely be, as it is this year, friggin' freezin'. As Quebec is further to the North than me, it is more bloody cold than here (-17oC today). If you are accustomed to making a "bridge" from Xmas to Carnaval by consuming alcohol, at least after dark (4pm, or earlier in a blizzard), then this hangover will build up day by day, until in one energetic celebration, skiing, dancing with Bonhomme (or at least trying to find him - the symbol of the Carnaval, a Quebecois snowman with a colourful traditional sash, and probably a good % of caribou in his bloodstream). A good 1 litre cane-full of caribou will kill any hangover, until at least it leaves your kidneys, or spring finally arrives (about May) .

Risking being unkind, Loonytunes posts a few thoughts about summer and Christmas food in New Zealand.

Optimists will blandly claim that it's always good to be alive, but summer most definitely has advantages. Food tastes better. You're insane if you think anything beats sliced cucumber and radishes in a bowl of vinegar with lots of salt at the ready. Even vegetarians stop looking so miserable, although it's true that one of the most pitiful sights of the modern age is a vegetarian at a barbecue. Steak. Sausages. Chops. Chooks. Shish kebabs. Burgers. Prawns. Fish. All washed down with lashings of fine wine and cold beer. Fantastic

Heyyyyyyy... me a veggie... and me the grinniest thing you will ever meet... ~frown~... Ooopsss... sorry grin slipped....

Just pass me a doughnut and me is happy... ~sly grin~... even at b-b-q's...

Not aimed at you personally Greebo

Here, have some strawberries and ice-cream with a doughnut to follow

We eat a lot of veggies, though we are not vegetarians. Another great thing to toast on the barbie (the pit of burning coals, not the large-breasted plastic doll) are corn-cobs (leave the husks on), onions wrapped in foil then served with lime juice, tomatoes, slices of egg-plant, chiles poblano etc. These accompany a big slab of burnt animal flesh well, but for vegetarians, they do not have to participate in that, and can revel in their strawberries with Devon cream, creme brulee and cognac, whatever, while the carnivores gulp down chunks of burnt muscle tissue.

Loonytunes with Ace up Sleeve - I wish I could roll out the BBQ. There are some disadvantages caused by my geopgraphic location. One is that it is about -15-20oC outside, and snow crystals are blowing all over the place at about 30Km/h. With a really hot barbeque, perhaps using an afterburner stuck on a propane tank, the cooking effect would approach normal barbeque conditions. The other is that it is so cold that the sliding door to the balcony has frozen shut overnight with the humidity required to live inside, without drying up (freeze drying). After an hour of chippping away with a mallet and screwdriver and wrestling with the frozen door frame (yes your flesh does stick to frozen metal if wet), I have given up for now. I have a half lamb quartered out there in a box, because I do not have a deep freezer big enough to hold it (it is a NZ lamb by the way - I can tell from the big stamp on its leg, we have wonderful lambs from Quebec, but I thought I would take the chance on a semi-kiwi lamb to sustain us over the hols.) - I would like to cook some of it this week, along with the blade roast also frozen out there. My mountain bike is also out there, and I need to take it in to disassemble for maintenance and to make sure it is OK for Spring (it is rather a nice one, and I fear damage to it may occur).

I may have to call the Super for some assistance, and perhaps a blow-torch, or the fire-brigade if they will let me use the big ladder.

The third reason is that I live on the 4th floor, and you are not allowed to set fires above the 2nd floor as it is difficult for the fire dept. to get people up there. Ah.. the wonders of urban life in a frozen continental climate.

Next Xmas we are going to Mexico.

Oh gosh... yummy scrummy in Greebo's tummy... Starwberries... cream... doughnuts... ~grin~... my idea of heaven...

Hi there Dude Long time no see! Any chance that you can formulate your above postings into an article for the Post?? I am sure that it would make interesting reading
shazzPRME

What would you suggest as a format, besides cut and paste? Should this be an article on Canadian winter barbequing or lack thereof? It was a balmy -10oC today and sunny. So I was able to open the door, as it felt like with the sun things were going to thaw. It will drop to -20oC so my semi-lamb from sunny NZ should be OK, and is destined to be shish-kebab or a curry. Yesterday it was about -17oC, dark and windy.

I have a friend over the river in Quebec who claims he BBQs all year-round - He has one of those propane jobbies, and claims that even if it is -35oC (ie. late January) the steaks still cook with the lid down. The trick is that you wheel the BBQ to the back door and when ready, run out for a few seconds to put the meat on, close the lid and run back inside watching the food cook through a window (you can judge from the amount of smoke pouring out). If you can picture somone tossing steaks on grill wearing an Eskimo style parka and thick gloves while a blizzard is blowing and it is below -30oC - is that not a picture of paradise?

If you have the time, the BBQ thoughts would make an interesting read...and throw in an (edited?) version of your Christmas/Millennium celebrations as the ending?! Then just pop it into email, either to me or Pastey
shazzPRME

OK, I'll see what I can do. Maybe fittingly my New Year's celebrations involved shivering in a blanket watching people have fun on TV while getting over my Y2K bug (flu). On top of that it is 0oC today so the semi-lamb from NZ has now been taken inside and is jammed in the fridge. This means we still have a bottle of champagne left over to celebrate something else soon.

My sympathies to you Dude, I too am suffering from 'THE BUG' (flu) and reading about the BBQ in Canada made me feel even worse.I know what it's like to be cold, I spent some time in the Arctic circle BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR It was damned cold. I think I'll curl up in bed AGAIN BBB'Atcho'YE.

Dude, I agree with Shazz, your Canadian trials and tribulations would make a good yarn for the h2g2Post.

I saw a bit of Vancouver's New Year's Eve celebrations on TV. Brrrr. If it is any consolation most of NZ was wet, inside and out.

LOL! I guess we have you all sewn up then Dude Get over your flu bug 1st though! How come nobody predicted the Flu Millennium Bug then?
shazzPRME

Vancouver has Spring-like Winters! Those in Newfoundland were outside at about -25oC for the first New Year's in N. America. Some folks in Alberta a balmy -30oC or so. You could certainly not get a half NZ lamb and stick it on your balcony for most of the Winter in Vancouver, unless you are breeding maggots for fishing in the Summer - Those folks- they even have lawnmowers out in the Winter (Vancouver residents, not maggot breeders)!

Bug has gone! Bike away in storage, time to find the skis and mix up some caribou!

Funny.. as I did not do anything except convalesce I woke up early on the 1st and late morning took the daughter for a slog around in the snow on her sled. It was eerily quiet, even for Ottawa - there was less than one other person walking around the city trail. I think the y2k bug had infected them all.