a peek inside the fishbowl

Alternate title: Because I’m a Sucker for Cool Packaging

I found myself at a Loblaws that was not my own. I hate not being on my own turf. I never know where anything is! But I was there, and I had to get stuff … including a box of cereal for myself. I usually get an organic hemp variety, but this store didn’t seem to carry it.

That’s when I spied this:

cereal 

(Figurine not included!)

I think I might have stopped and gasped. I am soooo Prime Target Market for this kind of stuff. (A marketer’s dreeaaaaaam!) Could it be the orange and brown that appealed to me, a child of the 1970s?

I loved the packaging design. The text was written with a sense of humour. And most importantly, it appeared to be healthy – no added sugar and low in sodium.  I bought it. The question was, would it taste good? After several crunchy/chewy bowls – I have to say – yes. (Here’s their website btw… it’s kinda neat.)

I am impressed by the raisins in this cereal. I have a pretty good hunch that for the past 30 years we consumers have been totally hornswaggled – tricked ! – into believing that raisins don’t get any bigger or juicier than what’s found in those mini packs of SunMaid raisins or in Raisin Bran. I hate to break it to you folks, that’s not a raisin. Dorset Cereals have something called a Chilean Flame Raisin. They’re big and meaty, and make our North American raisins look like the sickly second cousins of the Chileans.

The “super high fiber” on the front is a wee bit misleading. If you read the nutrition information label and know you way around cereal a bit you’d know that there are other brands out there that have more fibre. I need my fibre! So for the past couple of mornings I’ve mixed it with Bran Buds to ratch it up a little bit. (Haha, I just typed Bran Bugs by mistake. Freudian?)

You’re probably wondering if the kids like this stuff. Well, I haven’t offered and they haven’t tried. I think I’ll keep it that way for awhile. :)

19 Feb, 2008

I know I’m not shopping for anything…

By andrea tomkins in Oh! Things!

… but if I was I would totally buy this painting (via), this floor lamp for the corner of our dark dining room, this bird house, a pewter acorn, and a copy of In Defense Of Food by Michael Pollan.

And that’s it.

Day 18: Taking a break from igloo building

Archives


  • Jeanie Maennling: I spent many wonderful days visiting my cousins and Uncle Herb and aunt Eleanor at the Farm in the 1950's. Mycousin Skippy (Sharon) and I got into l
  • alex: For a classic Canadian treat for valentine day , try a BeaverTail (a fried dough pastry) there its yummy
  • Juliet Luiz: I was at this park today and saw the foundation and historical sign which got me curious and let me to your blog post! Great information:) too bad t
  • Rowyn Tape: Hello, I was sitting at Easter dinner with my grandmother and she was telling me this story. She is Herbert Lytles daughter who eventually bought the
  • Bernie: I freeze ball sizes of bread dough for beavertails each winter season.Easy to thaw, roll out and fry. Best winter treat!
  • Jen_nifer: I feel very much the same about my SUP. Floating with snacks is fantastic! When I go on water with some current, I make sure that I paddle into the cu
  • sam: Great article. This is very insightful. Thanks for sharing

The Obligatory Blurb

My name is Andrea and I live in Ottawa with my husband Mark and our dog Sunny who is kind of a big deal on Instagram. During the day I work as a freelance writer. I am a longtime Ottawa blogger and I've occupied this little corner of the WWW since 1999. The Fishbowl is my whiteboard, water cooler, and journal, all rolled into one. I'm passionate about healthy living, arts and culture, travel, great gear, good food, and sharing the best of Ottawa. I also love vegetables, photography, gadgets, and great design.

If you're so inclined, you can read more about me here.

I've deactivated the commenting function as well as my contact form so if you want to get in touch, please drop me a line at quietfish@gmail.com. Thank you!

 


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