Canadian Blog Awards and Why I Need Your Vote

Canadian Blog Awards and Why I Need Your Vote

cdnba_2007_best-activity.jpgIt’s small. It’s earnest. Although it teeters on the julienne-thin line between cute and kitschy, I want it as much as I want a new stove. Last year Yarn Harlot won first prize for the Best Activities Blog (where I swiped the nifty logo on the left). This year I’d like the honour of posting this eager beaver on my blog and seeing a homemade 30-second YouTube video about my activity of choice. For Stephanie, they dangled a ball of bright yellow yarn. What would they do for me? Melt a coffee maker?

From now until November 29th, the polls are open at The Canadian Blog Awards. I’ve been nominated in two categories. You can vote once in each (hint, hint):

The rules have changed so you can only vote once per round in each category. The top five blogs go onto Round 2 and after another flurry of votes, a winner is declared. Making it to Round 2 would make me happy (hint, hint). And I need to be happy…

The astute reader will have latched onto the comment about the new stove and have cued the theme to Jaws.

The Story

We are alive. We are fine. And we are officially looking for a new stove. With any luck we’ll have a shiny new appliance before the blog polls close. You see, I have a 15-year-old gas range. It’s a bare-bones, 24-inch almond stove with no insulation, four rusting burners and a broiler door than comes off its hinges every time you grill. Like me, it’s small, quirky and occasionally endearing. After all, it produces some excellent food and a few good stories. I hope this is its final tale.

Last night, I turned the stove to 350F, popped the chicken into the oven and retired to the TV room to watch the episode of Dr. Who we’d taped earlier in the week. When the show was over I went to check on dinner. The kitchen didn’t smell of roasting chicken. It wasn’t toasty warm, like it gets whenever I cook. Confused, I opened the oven door to raw poultry and the smell of gas.

On went the fan. We propped open the door. Ice-cold fresh air rushed in and the fumes wafted out into the night. Hungry and full of adrenaline, I ensured there was no gas leak, downed some wine and crunched some numbers. I can’t fix a tap without causing bodily harm, so I’m not about to tackle a faulty pilot light. While our insurance would cover the cost of replacing the entire home should I blow it up, I just cleaned. Can’t have all that effort go to waste.

So, you go vote. I’ll go shopping and we’ll compare results later.

7 Comments
  • Divawrites
    Posted at 10:46h, 24 November

    Consider it done…and you melted your stove?
    Jeez…that’s a bit dramatic for a good blog entry don’t you think!
    🙂
    Glad you are okay. Stoves can be replaced…people, not so much.

  • Anonymous
    Posted at 12:09h, 24 November

    my votes on in. sorry to hear about your stove.
    katharine

  • Dana McCauley
    Posted at 12:22h, 24 November

    Congrats! I was nominated in two different categories: best blog and best new blog. I’m off to vote for you in your categories and hope you’ll be able to support me as well.

    Good luck and have fun with the stove shopping!

  • cheryl
    Posted at 13:02h, 24 November

    What a nightmare. But it could have been SO much worse, right? (I know, that’s small consolation.) A new stove? Yowza. I think I know what you and Andrew will be getting each other for Christmas…

    I’m voting now.

  • Roxanne
    Posted at 15:49h, 24 November

    Voting done! I’m glad it all worked out … BUT as the wife of a former firefighter … gotta say …

    open windows YES
    turn on fan NO

    What if the fan had sparked somehow?

  • Jenny
    Posted at 16:28h, 24 November

    Voted! Crossing my fingers for you Christie!

    When will you find out?

    Jenny Cromie
    http://www.thegoldenpencil.com

  • Christie's Corner
    Posted at 17:31h, 24 November

    Thanks all.

    Diva, we didn’t melt the stove. We’re not THAT bad. I was referring to when Andrew melted my stove top coffeemaker. TWICE.

    Dana, I have voted for you! Congrats on the nominations. Best of luck with making it to round 2.

    Cheryl, yup, it could have been much, much worse, especially given Roxanne’s explanation as to why turning on the fan was a bad idea. Yikes!! Won’t do that again.

    Jennie, thanks for the votes. Round 2 is December 1 through 8. I believe the little beaver gets handed out shortly thereafter.