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According to Wikipedia, Poutine originated in Quebec. I’ve never been to Quebec, so I’ve never had Quebecois poutine. I’ve heard it’

s very good.

All I can say is that I’ve had my share of Vancouver poutine and non & 1 Seattle non-poutine.

What is Poutine? It is a dish consisting of French fries topped with fresh cheese curd, covered with brown gravy and sometimes additional ingredients.

Right. So really, anything that has cheese curds, gravy and fries can be poutine.

Keyword: CHEESE CURD.

That being said: I’ve been to my fair share of places that have called french fries, gravy & shredded cheese (and anything but cheese curds) poutine. Guys/Gals/People of the World, it’s not poutine.

Case in point: @GranvilleRoom in Twitter says “New saturday features include: $7 poutine (arguably best in town)…” Well I would have to disagree. I’ve tried their poutine, it’s not POUTINE, it didn’t have cheese curds on it and it was a sad pile of fries with sad gravy and sad cheese. Not poutine, you guys stop calling it POUTINE.  Have you seen their Yelp page?

Another Vancouver place – The Templeton. I love their food. I love their ‘poutine’ but it’s not poutine, it’s fries.gravy.cheese. It’s good, but it’s not poutine.

I went to the Steelhead Diner in Seattle & they had poutine on the menu. It was Beecher’s cheese, it was not cheese curds. Yes, it was good, but it was.not.POUTINE.

I’ve been noticing this trend for years. And I’m speaking up about it. Fritz’s has poutine. La Belle Patate has poutine. Belgian Fries has poutine. A&W has freakin’ POUTINE and it’s good.

Hey Restaurants/Lounges/Places that Serve Food, this is POUTINE:

Great, now start making it.

Everyone that knows me (and some don’t even know me well!) know that I love llamas, alpaca’s, etc.

If there is one to be seen, people will forward pictures, they will tag me in a photo of a llama, they send me llama-ie things, they just know I LOVE these creatures.

Before I had the pleasure of meeting an Alpaca, I loved Llamas. I still do. But then I met the Alpaca and they were more amazing of a creature than I ever knew. Cuter, too.

My first exposure to a Guanaco was at the Greater Vancouver Zoo and they were just as curious.

Skinnier creatures, for sure.

That’s a Guanaco..

I always joke around that it’s my dream to either own a bunch of alpaca’s/llama’s or at least buy one and board it. I intend on doing one of these options, not sure which one will work out just yet.

When I was a child, I had my first encounter with a Llama:

And then as I got older I just absolutely inherently started loving these lovely creatures.  I’ve been to many a llama/alpaca farms. I try to go to any sort of Agri Fair JUST to see them. I will go to the zoo just to see them as well. I’ve been to Washington just to visit a couple Alpaca farms and have had tours.

I guess everyone just wants to know why? They are the most curious animals I have ever encountered. And since I am curious as well, that draws me in. They are timid at times & very shy. They are loving and also scared, until they decide you’re okay.

That is me amongst the alapca’s at a farm in Washington state. I like to call myself the Alpaca Whisperer, but I’m not sure that’s such a good idea..

I mean.. even my travel mascot is Llouie, purchased from FAO in NYC.

So that’s my story.

2 years ago my boyfriend took me to Las Vegas. I was in awe of it’s spectacularness (it’s a word, damnit).

It truly is the city of excess. More is more, if you know what I mean. The first time I went we stayed at Paris (his parents were paying, god bless their souls).

I visited the Liberace Museum, a total entrance into the life of Liberace. His custom vehicles encased in mirrors and jewels. His costumes, some weighing up to 200 pounds. I was completely enamored at his life. To this day, I still have a picture of Liberace at my desk. I love him and all he was about.

I truly wish I was able to be one of his ‘fag hags‘.

But this time, I planned our trip. I like planning & making lists. I had us set up to eat about 30 different meals.. That didn’t happen. 2 meals times 5 days = 10 meals. You just can’t eat 3 meals a day in Vegas when the average plate can feed 3 people.

We stayed at Fitzgerald’s for the first night & then the next 3 nights we stayed at the Golden Nugget.

Honestly, you can do so much in Vegas, because if you have a rental car you do not need to hang out in the city limits all the time.

Case in point:

Bonnie Springs. It’s an old town with an old western theme. You pay $3 and you get to enter into the Animal Sanctuary! And the Old Town, which is a replica from the 1880′s. It’s pretty awesome for a person like me who loves animals and old things.

And they had a llama. A freaking llama. 3 of them infact!

And then there is Red Rock Canyon National Conservation area.

It was really hot that day, but windy as you can tell. You pay $5 to get into the park & you drive through all around the little lookouts & stops. There are many many trails to hike. Just being amongst the beautiful red rocks was good enough for me.

Proof that life is beautiful.

So, onto the food.

Sage Fried Chicken & Waffles at Hash House A-Go-Go. Amazing. Enough food for 3 people, at least.. we couldn’t even finish it.

And another good thing about Vegas.. I was able to go there with this lovely man.

The set is here, if you’re interested.

Here I am. My name is Gina and I have clinical depression and I suffer from bi-polar/mania. I’m so tired of the taboo subject and I’m tired of the stigma, so I’m coming out.

No, I do not like the fucking rain and I hate it when it’s dark outside during the day. Yes, I suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder and you’re ‘I’m so depressed the sun is not out’ means SOMETHING to me, but to you it might not mean anything but a joke.

Yes, I do take pills. I take prozac and occasionally an atavan. Because have you seen me when I don’t? No, and you don’t want to.

Yes, I have a therapist too. She kicks my ass left & right, oh and I haven’t been to her in 2 months. Yes, I paint, draw and sometimes cut my hair myself because I’m feeling ‘off’.

No, I don’t want a fucking hug and no I don’t want to know about how your dog died and you’re depressed. I’m depressed too. Everyday. But there are days when my happiness can overcome that sadness. No, I don’t know why I’m sad, no I don’t know why I feel like murdering someone. Yes, I mostly want you to leave me alone and let me come out when I’m ready. No, don’t provoke me, you’ll make it worse. No, don’t say TAKE A PILL, because I WILL. And I do. And it’s not fucking funny.

I am the norm. I am the less than norm. I take less pills than a lot of people with mental illnesses. For years, I didn’t  take any and guess what? I wasn’t fine.

Now, I can tolerate things like noises (barely) and people (sometimes). Today I locked myself in the room because I couldn’t tolerate listening to anyone speak. Sometimes the childrens voices are too much for me and I go mental (pun intended).

So, yeah, I have a problem.

What are you going to do about it?