Canada

The Torontoist (from, oddly, Toronto) reports on a great idea for a new business: "New Board Game Café Welcomes You, But Not Your Laptop"

Ben Castanie's new Koreatown café, at 600 Bloor Street West, just east of Palmerston Avenue, will emphatically not have free Wi-Fi. In fact, laptops and their attendant air of isolation are completely counter to what Castanie is trying to do. "I just don't want people sitting staring at their screens," he says. Then he starts explaining the system of categorization he'd used to organize his café's library of 1,500-plus board games.

Snakes and Lattes, as the café is (pretty cleverly) known, opened for business earlier today.

Via Reddit

Closer to home, I'm pretty sure Back to the Grind in downtown Riverside has a selection of board games for customers, not to mention books. And free WiFi. ;)

Natalie MacMaster and her musical partner Donnell Leahy play several tunes from the Cape Breton tradition -- a sprightly, soulful style of folk fiddling.

I made this flag image a few years ago, for what I can't remember -- maybe in solidarity with the Canadian World Domination site. :)

The Canadian Space Agency has came up with some new snacks for its astronaut Dave Williams to try out during STS-118, which was Endeavour's trip to the International Space Station back in August this year. As Adam Gollner describes in this Epicurious.com post, "The Canasnack",

The problem with NASA's freeze-dried snacks is that if you're eating sliced strawberries or Neopolitan ice cream bars, they all taste like oversweetened sofa foam. That's why the Canadian Space Agency just unveiled their own contribution to the space munchies race: the "Canasnack."

which was a sandwich cookie. They also tried out a caribou jerky, which apparently met with Williams' approval.

The snacks are the result of a joint effort between the CSA and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. From an August press release, "AAFC: Canasnack is Out of this World"

AAFC and the CSA are working together to develop nutritious foods for crew members during spaceflight. The STS-118 shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS) includes a Canadian-made cookie designed by AAFC scientists to meet spaceflight requirements.

"Canada can now add the Canasnack to its list of advances in space innovation," said the Honourable Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board. "The benefits of this project will go far beyond better food choices for astronauts, as scientists apply the valuable experience acquired to other areas of functional food and nutraceuticals, ultimately benefiting all Canadians."

Anything that keeps us moving away from the Goo is a good thing. :)

The Ducks won game 4 last night and so are up 3-1 over the Senators; they could win the Cup on Wednesday. Wow.

Strange to think it's been four years since their battle with the Devils in the finals. That year (2003) it was New Jersey taking two games at home, then the Ducks returning the favor, and back and forth till the Devils won Game 7 on their ice. Just like then, I'm divided about the Ducks winning.

As a Kings fan, I'd sure rather the Ducks wouldn't win the Cup first, and with what I like to refer to as my Canadian-American heritage ;) I wouldn't mind seeing the Sens win.

At the same time, how cool would it be for a California team to win?

Dodgers win in the 16th inning with a walk-off homer by Ramon Martinez, of all people...his second homer of the year, and what a time to get it. :) Great game, if looonnnnggg.

Bob over at The Griddle had a story Tuesday evening ("So long Ottawa, hello Allentown!") on the AAA Ottawa Lynx moving to Pennsylvania and, by doing so, leaving as the final AAA team in Canada and the last international team in the International League.

The thought prompted a bit of reading on where teams used to be, turning up this list at Wikipedia: List of defunct International League teams (1912-). Here are some of my new favorite team names:

• Atlanta Crackers
• Havana Sugar Kings who later moved to become the short-lived...
• ...Jersey City Jerseys
• Louisville RiverBats
• Reading Aces
• San Juan Marlins
• Toronto Maple Leafs (Funny, too, is the first Toronto team being the Canucks.)
• Winnipeg Whips

See also

International League history

A cool article/profile on rookie catcher (and Canadian) Russell Martin in the Montreal Gazette: "To live and catch in L.A."

LOS ANGELES - The rookie catcher from Chelsea by way of Paris, Montreal West and Ville LaSalle, is sitting in the dugout talking to a visitor from home when the opposing team's shortstop, an established veteran, stops for a brief word.

"Great game last night," shortstop Orlando Cabrera told Russell Martin, who had three hits in a 16-3 dismantling of the Los Angeles Angels by the Los Angeles Dodgers the previous evening.

"Thanks, man," Martin said. And then the wide-eyed kid's eyes grow a little wider.

"I was an Expos fan, definitely. I remember watching him play, and now I'm playing against him," Martin said. "I'd be at the Big O, in the stands watching, thinking: 'I want to play against those guys one day.' And here I am. It's surreal, a little bit."...

And check out what vet catcher Sandy Alomar Jr had to say about Martin:

"He's doing everything right," Alomar added. "He's a very hungry young ballplayer, and primarily I have to say he's a very exciting player. It's very difficult to find a catcher who is an exciting player, because usually they're slow. But he is a five-tool catcher like Pudge Rodriguez. And he can make a game exciting like Ichiro (Suzuki). He's fun to watch."