Author: wallaceburgadultactivitycentre

fitness

Seated Tai Chi Exercises

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Today’s exercise video comes to us via David-Dorian Ross and walks us through a 15 minute Tai Chi exercise specifically designed to be done from a seated position. This allows those with mobility issues to participate in this relaxing, meditative martial art. It isn’t limited to those with mobility issues. Anyone can do this Tai Chi video. I have, and I love it!

Video via David-Dorian Ross

You should always consult your physician or other healthcare provider before changing your diet or starting an exercise program. WAAC is not responsible for any accident or injury that may occur while undertaking these exercises.

food, recipes

30-MINUTE MONGOLIAN BEEF

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This 30-Minute Mongolian Beef from Taste and See is savory and sweet and so delicious!!  With thinly cut steak, soy sauce, brown sugar, fresh garlic and ginger – all prepped and ready to eat in just 30 minutes! You can serve it with jasmine rice, steamed brown rice, rice noodles, or in lettuce wraps with crispy cellophane noodles. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and just predict that this Mongolian Beef recipe will become one of your new go-to dinner recipes!

Ingredients

Serves 6

  • 1½ pound 1-inch thick sirloin steak (you can also use flank or strip steaks)
  • 1/3 cup cornstarch
  • ¼ cup canola oil
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
  • 4 tablespoon garlic, minced
  • Red pepper flakes or chili oil
  • 1/3 cup reduced sodium tamari sauce (for gluten-free), or soy sauce if you prefer
  • ½ cup water
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 8 stalks scallions, green parts only, cut into 2 inch pieces

Directions

  1. Slice the steak in ¼-inch slices. Lay the slices flat, cover with plastic wrap and use a meat pounder to flatten the meat. Put the meat in a ziploc bag and add the cornstarch. Massage the steak and cornstarch together to make sure each piece is fully coated.
  2. Pour the canola oil into a large frying pan, and heat on medium high heat.
  3. Add the steak to the pan in a single layer and cook for 30 seconds per side (1 minute total). Cook the steak in batches rather than over-crowding the pan. Remove the steak from the pan as it finishes cooking, set it aside on a plate, then sprinkle with salt.
  4. Next, add the ginger, garlic, and chili oil or red pepper flakes (if desired for more spice) to the pan and sauté for 10-15 seconds.
  5. Stir in tamari (or soy sauce), water and brown sugar and bring the mixture to a boil.
  6. Fold the steak back in and let the sauce thicken for 20-30 seconds. (The cornstarch used on the steak should thicken the sauce.)
  7. Turn off the heat, add the green onions, and stir to combine.
  8. Serve over rice, rice noodles or in lettuce wraps.
Virtual Tours

Virtual Tour – Tower of London

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Today’s virtual tour takes us to merry, old England, where we are going on a tour of the Tower of London. Until just a few years ago, I had thought that the Tower of London was just that – a medieval tower, used as a jail to house criminals and enemies of the state until their release. Or their execution. You could have knocked me down with a feather when I found out that the Tower was much more. It is an entire complex that served not only as a jail for highborn troublemakers, but it was also the royal palace for more than 500 years. The grounds housed a menagerie of exotic animals and the public could pay an admission fee to tour the zoo. Built to celebrate the Norman conquest of Britain, the Tower of London began construction in 1066 and today is one of the most visited tourist attractions in London.

Video via Renata Pereira

As always, if there is a specific city or site that you want to have a virtual tour of, just let us know and we will do what we can to make it happen!

Uncategorized

Thinking Thursdays – Riddles and Brainteasers

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It’s time again for our Riddles and Brainteasers post for the month. Last month’s post really got your brain working out. Hopefully, today’s questions have you testing your mental agility again! As usual, we will post the 10 riddles below, then the answers, with a graphic separating the two, so hopefully you will notice if you start to scroll too far (but I won’t tell anyone if you cheat and peek at the answers!)

Don’t forget to tell us in the comments how you did!

The Questions

  1. When John was six years old, he hammered a nail into his favorite tree to mark his height. Ten years later at age sixteen, John returned to see how much higher the nail was. If the tree grew by five centimeters each year, how much higher would the nail be?
  2. I am four times as old as my daughter. In 20 years time I shall be twice as old as her. How old are we now?
  3. There is a lily pad in a small pond. The lily pad doubles in size each day. On the 20th day, it covers the whole pond. On what day was the lily pad  half the size of the pond?
  4. Which word is the odd one out?
    Seventy Brawl
    Clover Proper
    Carrot Swing
    Change Travel
    Sacred Stone
  5. You want to boil a two-minute egg. If you only have a three-minute timer (hourglass), a four-minute timer and a five-minute timer, how can you boil the egg for exactly two minutes?
  6. What has five wheels, though most people think of it as having only four. You cannot use it without that one wheel more, you can put things in it, you can strap things on top, You can’t find it in the market, but you can still go shop. What is it?
  7. If you were to spell out every whole number (in English), how high would you have to count before you would use the letter A?
  8. There is a certain club which is for men only. There are 600 men who belong to this club and 5% of these men wear one earring. Of the other 95% membership, half wear two earrings and the other half wear none. How many earrings are being worn in this club?
  9. A 300 ft. train is traveling 300 ft. per minute must travel through a 300 ft. long tunnel.  How long will it take the train to travel through the tunnel?
  10. You are standing in front of a room with one lightbulb inside of it. You cannot see if it is on or off. Outside the room, there are 3 switches in the off positions. You are allowed to flip whatever switches you want but can only enter the room once. How can you determine which switch controls the lightbulb?


The Answers

  1. The nail would be at the same height since trees grow at their tops.
  2. I am 40 and my daughter is 10. (In twenty years, I will be 60 and she will be 30)
  3. Day 19.  Most will say day 10, but that is incorrect because on day 20 the lily pad will have  doubled from day 19, so 19 must be half the size of the pond.
  4. Carrot. When the first and last letters are removed from the other words, they still spell another word.
    Seventy -> Event Brawl -> Raw
    Clover -> Love Proper -> Rope
    Swing -> Win Change -> Hang
    Travel -> Rave Sacred -> Acre
    Stone -> Ton
  5. Once the water is boiling, turn the three-minute timer and five-minute timer over. When the three-minute timer runs out, put the egg in the boiling water. When the five-minute timer runs out, two minutes have elapsed, and it is time take the egg out of the water. You don’t need the four-minute timer for this riddle.
  6. A car
  7. One thousand
  8. Six hundred. We know that 5%, or 30 of the men are wearing one earring. Of the other 95%, or 570, we know that half are wearing two earrings and the other half none. This is the same as if they all wore one.
  9. 2 minutes. The front of the train will make it through the tunnel in one minute, but the back of the train will just be entering the tunnel. It takes another minute for the back of the train to exit the tunnel.
  10. You turn 2 switches “on” and leave 1 switch “off” and wait about a minute. Just before you enter the room, turn one switch from “on” to “off”. Once in the room, if the lightbulb is on, it is obviously the switch that is still “on”. If the lightbulb is cold, then it was the switch that you never touched. If the lightbulb is off, but warm to the touch, it must be the last switch you turned off right before you entered the room.

How well did you do with our riddles today? Make sure you let us know in the comments!

Crafts

DIY Upgrading an Interior Door

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Is your home looking old and tired? Does it need an upgrade? One of the biggest impacts you can make in a house (after paint and flooring) is your doors. But they can be expensive to replace. So why not upgrade them instead? Evan and Katelyn show you how they took their plain slab door and turned it into a custom piece that looks very high end on a very reasonable budget. The price of lumber is higher now than when they made the video, but it is still much more cost effective than replacing your doors.

Video via EvanAndKatelyn

If you try your hand at upgrading your doors, send us an email at wallaceburgseniorcentre@gmail.com with pictures of your creation! We would love to see it!

fitness

Seated Knee-Strengthening Workout

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Steve Bottrill of the VON is back again with another great chair workout. This one is targeted to strengthening your knees – and who doesn’t need that? Follow along as Steve warms up your muscles and then leads you through exercises specifically designed to work on your knees, allowing you to regain or maintain knee health.

Video via Steve Bottrill

You should always consult your physician or other healthcare provider before changing your diet or starting an exercise program. WAAC is not responsible for any accident or injury that may occur while undertaking these exercises.

food

Blackberry, Avocado and Arugula Salad

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This summery salad makes the most of fresh produce with an arugula base, fresh blackberries, blueberries, cucumber, avocado, hazelnuts, feta and a lime mint vinaigrette. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

Salad:

  • 5 cups arugula 
  • 1 cup blackberries
  • ¾ cup blueberries
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 1 ½ cups cucumber, sliced thinly
  • ⅓ cup feta
  • ⅓ cup toasted hazelnuts

Vinaigrette:

  • ⅓ cup olive oil 
  • 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • Pepper

Instructions

  1. Whisk together all ingredients for vinaigrette. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. 
  2. Assemble salad ingredients and toss in vinaigrette.
  3. Enjoy!

Recipe and image via Crowded Kitchen

As always, if you have a favourite recipe that you would like to share, email us at wallaceburgseniorcentre@gmail.com

Virtual Tours

Virtual Tour – Angkor Wat

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Angkor what? Though the name may not be familiar to you, you will most likely recognize Angkor Wat. Built between 1113 and 1150 in northwest Cambodia, Angkor Wat was a temple complex originally dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, but converted to a Buddhist temple by the end of that century. When it was officially designated a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1992, tourism to Angkor Wat had just over 7,000 visitors a year. It has since skyrocketed to more than two and a half million visitors each year.

Video via Treadmill TV

Trivia

Thinking Thursdays – Name That Song #2

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We are back with another Name That Song trivia post! How does it work, you ask? We have posted a line or two from popular songs from the fifties onward. Your job is to guess both the song and the artist that the lyrics are from. Some are more difficult than others, but they are all lyrics from well-known songs. How many can you guess correctly?

The answers will be listed below the questions with a picture separating them so you don’t scroll too far. No peeking though!

Don’t forget to leave a comment telling us how you did!

Ready….. Set…. GO!

The Lyrics

  1. They’re out to get you, better leave while you can, don’t wanna be a boy, you wanna be a man.
  2. You know I’m just a fool who’s willing to sit around and wait for you.
  3. And I saw the surprise, and the fear in his eyes, when I took his glass of champagne.
  4. She says “We’ve got to hold on to what we’ve got. It doesn’t make a difference if we make it or not.”
  5. Every little swallow, every chickadee, every little bird in the tall oak tree.
  6. Out here in the fields, I fight for my meals.
  7. I just walked in to find you here with that sad look upon your face.
  8. I got my first real 6-string. Bought it at the five and dime.
  9. Remember to let her into your heart, then you can start to make it better.
  10. I hope you don’t mind, I hope you don’t mind, that I put down in words how wonderful life is while you’re in the world.

The Answers

  1. Beat It – Michael Jackson
  2. Hopelessly Devoted to You – Olivia Newton John
  3. Friends in Low Places – Garth Brooks
  4. Livin’ on a Prayer – Bon Jovi
  5. Rockin’ Robin – Bobby Day
  6. Baba O’Riley – The Who
  7. I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor
  8. Summer of ’69 – Bryan Adams
  9. Hey Jude – The Beatles
  10. Your Song – Elton John

How did you do? Tell us your score in the comments!

Nature

The Wonders of Nature

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Today’s Wonders of Nature post features more beautiful pictures taken locally by 365 Days of Beauty. Last week we brought you stunning images of all kinds of local flora. Today it is time to show off the fauna! That’s right, it’s time to see some animals. There are lots of images of birds, frogs, turtles, a beaver, even a rabbit and her baby bunnies! I hope you enjoy this post as much as I do!

Crafts

DIY Outdoor Solar Chandelier

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I love a beautiful outdoor space, don’t you? My only problem is being able to enjoy it at night without spending a fortune to make sure I can see it while still having it look good. That’s when Do-It-Yourself videos come in handy! A few things from the dollar store, a can of spray paint and a couple of hours of work, and you can have a pretty chandelier so you can enjoy your backyard after the sun goes down!

Video via Rachel’s Unique Crafts
fitness

Stretch and Strengthen with Meredith

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Today’s exercise post is a 2-for-1 special! Below are two beginner level stretch and strengthen exercise videos with Meredith of Senior Fitness with Meredith. Why two? Because one video works on your feet and ankles while the other targets your wrists and hands. I personally feel a little lopsided if only the one set of joints gets a bit of a workout while the other gets nothing. Anyone else feel the same way? And when it comes to mobility, we want to ensure we are taking care of all of our extremities. Even though there are 2 videos this week, they have a total run time of under 40 minutes, making this a great workout routine.

Video via Senior Fitness With Meredith
Video via Senior Fitness With Meredith

You should always consult your physician or other healthcare provider before changing your diet or starting an exercise program. WAAC is not responsible for any accident or injury that may occur while undertaking these exercises.

food, recipes

Low Carb Breakfast Casserole

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This month’s breakfast recipe comes to us from Buns In My Oven and I love it! It’s great for anyone on a Keto diet or if you just want to lower your carbohydrates! This low carb breakfast casserole is hearty and filling, because it’s packed full of protein from the sausage, bacon, and eggs. It’s great to make ahead of time and either keep in the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer. Freeze it in individual servings and pull out and reheat in the microwave as needed. The best part? You can add in any vegetables or meat you like! I’m going to try adding mushrooms to mine. You can even top it with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of chives if you want to get fancy!

Ingredients

Serves 6

  • 1/2 lb sausage
  • 1/2 lb bacon
  • 6 eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1/4 sweet onion, diced
  • 1/2 bell pepper, diced
  • 1/2 tbsp Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions

  1. Brown the sausage in a large skillet, crumbling as it cooks. Drain grease and set aside.
  2. Dice the bacon into bite-sized chunks and cook in a large skillet, stirring often, until crisp. Drain the grease and set aside.
  3. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a square baking dish with non-stick spray.
  4. Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and add the milk. Whisk together until well combined.
  5. Stir in the sausage, bacon, cheddar, onion, pepper, hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Stir until well combined.
  6. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 35-40 minutes or until eggs are set and edges are golden brown.
  7. Let cool 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
  8. Enjoy!

As always, if you have a favourite recipe that you would like to share, email us at wallaceburgseniorcentre@gmail.com

Virtual Tours

Virtual Tour – Eiffel Tower

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Today’s virtual tour takes us to one of the most iconic tourist attractions in the world – the Eiffel Tower. Situated in the centre of Paris, France, the Eiffel Tower was built near the banks of the Seine River for the 1889 World’s Fair. Designed by and named after Gustave Eiffel, la dame de fer or Iron Lady, as she is known locally, is the most visited paid tourist attraction in the world, welcoming nearly 7 million visitors each year. More than 130 years later, the tower is still the tallest structure in Paris, providing sweeping views of the city.

Make sure you turn on the Closed Captions to get interesting tidbits of information during the tour – like the fact that the architect made an apartment for himself at the top of the tower! Could you imagine waking up to panoramic views of the Paris skyline every morning?! You can turn on the Closed Captions by clicking on the black button with the letters “CC” in white. This is usually located on the bottom right of the video itself.

Let us know what you think of today’s virtual tour in the comments and, as always, if there is a place you would like us to feature on an upcoming Virtual Tour post, please email us at wallaceburgadultactivitycentre@gmail.com.

Video via Prowalk Tours

Humour

A Little Bit of Humor – Comedy Wildlife 2021 – So Far!

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The Comedy Wildlife 2021 competition is still open for entries! The closing date is the end of this month, June 30th. That didn’t stop the organizers from releasing a few of their favourite submissions to date! Take a gander at the images below and if you have a few funny pictures on your camera, consider submitting them to the contest. As their website says, “We know you probably didn’t go to any exotic locations lately, but let’s be honest, one year our winner was a wild hamster from suburban Germany, and another year the winner was a squirrel.” (via People.com) There is even a picture from good ol’ Southwestern Ontario. Can you guess which one?

Photographer: Arthur Trevino
Title: Bald Eagle Gets A Surprise!
Description: When this Bald Eagle missed on its attempt to grab this prairie dog, the prairie dog jumped towards the eagle and startled it long enough to escape to a nearby burrow. A real David vs Goliath story!
Animal: Bald Eagle
Location of shot: Hygiene, CO.
Photographer: Lea Scaddan
Title: Missed
Description: Two Western Grey Kangaroos were fighting and one missed kicking him in the stomach.
Animal: Western Grey Kangaroo
Location of shot: Perth, Western Australia
Photographer: Giovanni Querzani
Title: ROFL
Description: A young lion in the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, who apparently is laughing at my photography skills.
Animal: Panthera Leo
Location of shot: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
Photographer: Rohin Bakshi
Title: Cranky Hippo
Description: The baby hippo wanted his mother’s attention, but it seems he wasn’t getting any.
Animal: Hippopotamus
Location of shot: Vwaza Game Reserve, Malawi
Photographer: Philipp Stahr
Title: Sweet lips are for kissing!
Description: Usually box fishes are difficult to take pictures of, since they do not have a problem of a diver coming close, but if you show interest, they always turn the back and not the face to you. That’s why I tried to swim 0.5m above the fish and showing no interest at all to him. The same time I had my camera not in front of me, but below at my chest pointing to the bottom. When the right moment had come, I turned the camera 90 degrees to the front and just point and shoot, hoping to have the fish in focus. Never expected to have its beautiful lips that close!
Animal: Boxfish
Location of shot: Curacaos, Dutch Caribbean
Photographer: Kevin Biskaborn
Title: Quarantine Life
Description: Isolated inside with your family eager to get out and explore the world? These eastern raccoon kits are too. Just when you think there’s no more room in the tree hollow, mother raccoon appears and displays just how compact the space is. The babies clambered all over their mom and each another, struggling to take a look at the exact same time. After exploring a particular area with numerous tree hallows, I identified it as a hot spot for raccoon families. Since raccoons will move from den to den, often not spending more than one night at a time in a particular den, locating an area with numerous options is key to locating the animals. I stumbled across this family and immediately worked on leveling the camera with the hole to prevent an upward angle. When the camera and tripod were ready, the baby raccoons were extremely curious (and cooperative), sticking their heads out for a closer look!
Animal: Raccoon / Procyon lotor
Location of shot: Southwestern Ontario, Canada
Photographer: KT WONG
Title: Yoga Bittern
Description: A Yellow Bittern was trying very hard to get into a comfortable hunting position. I got this shot when it was between 2 stalks of lotus flower.
Animal: Yellow Bittern
Location of shot: Satay By The Bay, Singapore

Ok, so it wasn’t that hard to guess which picture was from Southwestern Ontario, but we all need an easy win now and then, don’t we? I was more than happy to help with that. 😀

Thinking Thursdays

Thinking Thursdays – Wuzzles

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Wuzzles? What are Wuzzles? I’m glad you asked. Wuzzles (also called Bamboozables) are word puzzles. They are a saying or phrase that is made up of a display of words, in an interesting way. The object is to try to figure out the well-known saying, person, place, or thing that each Wuzzle is meant to represent. They are usually presented in a box, but not always (and sometimes the box is used as part of the clue, but most of the time it’s just a box). My biggest hint is to think out loud and describe what you see.

Need an example? Here’s one for you:

Noon Good

The answer to this one is “Good Afternoon” and we know this because the word “good” comes after the word “noon,” so Good – after – noon. Good Afternoon.

Let’s see how many of the ones below you can guess correctly. I have 10 Wuzzles listed below, followed by a picture to separate the Wuzzles from the answers. Remember, no peeking allowed!

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Photo by Olya Kobruseva on Pexels.com

The Answers

  1. Right between the eyes
  2. Get in shape
  3. Merry-go-round
  4. Looking high and low
  5. For rent
  6. Broken heart
  7. High seas
  8. Just right
  9. Kick in the butt
  10. Dr. Doolittle
Nature

The Wonders of Nature Around Us

wallaceburgadultactivitycentre

Today’s post features beautiful pictures taken locally by 365 Days of Beauty. There is a little bit of beauty for everyone; flowers, forests, trees, clouds, fields, you name it. There are so many stunning pictures, I could have uploaded a lot more, but I restrained myself – for now. Rest assured, there will be more pictures from 365 Days of Beauty in the future!

If you want to up the ambiance, click play on the sound bar below to listen to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Spring while you enjoy the slide show.

If you have any pictures you would like us to share with our members, please email us at wallaceburgseniorcentre@gmail.com