Ancient Grains Archive

Two Things About Canada

I was going to write a long emo piece about Canada and being Canadian and my relationship to being Canadian, but we've already had such dynamite identity stuff today, I just want to talk a little bit about how it's easier to be a young creative person in Canada than it is ...Read More

Food Trolling With Mallory, Commonwealth Edition: Biscuits

I hesitated, at first, to even write this. The Nations of the Commonwealth have, it must be admitted, suffered enough when it comes to culinary reputations. There is no need for a pile-on. And they have suffered, at times, unjustly: New Zealand has wonderful butter and lamb. I hold myself second to ...Read More

The Finger-Throwing Uncle and Other Stories from Malaysia

My third-generation Hokkien Chinese-Malaysian mum was born in Malaya, three years before its independence from Britain. Having the onerous position of being the third-born child and oldest girl in a family of twelve siblings, she grew up waking at 4am every day, going to the yard, killing a chicken and preparing it ...Read More

Acting Canadian

Canadians have successfully passed as non-Canadians for years. But how successful are natives of other countries at playing Canucks? What follows is a decidedly non-exhaustive list of non-Canadian thespians stiffening up their facial muscles in order to portray an array of the Frozen People: Mounties, hockey players, fur traders, beer barons, and more. 1. ...Read More

Tomato Stems

I must have smelled the scent of a tomato vine stem at least a thousand times in my life, in so many different places throughout my life, but it only ever conjures up one memory. Standing at the kitchen sink, tearing the sun-ripened tomatoes off the vine, the smell hits me in the guts ...Read More

“A Good Attitude Towards Menstruation,” Kids in the Hall

How better to start Commonwealth Day than with the greatest Canadian sketch comedy troupe of ours or (prove me wrong!) any age? ...Read More

Welcome to Commonwealth Day

One of the many benefits of owning your own website is the ability to arbitrarily declare theme days. Today is Commonwealth Day, and there is nothing you can do to stop us. Have you strong opinions on the Harare Declaration? Do you know how to pronounce "Maldives"? ...Read More

Toast Points: The Week of Oct. 4th, 2013

On Monday, Elizabeth Wurtzel and Jonathan Franzen became best friends forever, and people didn't know where to put their arms during sex. Tuesday was mostly about latkes. ...Read More