The word of the week is friendship...
Aug 15 - 48 hours until ON
It's all about the anticipation, folks. I've checked and double-checked things here, ensuring that my car rental details are in place, that I have my ticket info for the flights( just in case )and that I've updated / added all the people I can think of to my email lists to get the word out independantly of FBook - which not everyone is on. I've packed up a large suitcase and a small carry-on, with the necessities and a few frivolities that will make the trip easier in many ways, though again I am going to travel light and forgo my usual multiple changes of clothes for any weather eventuality. From what I can see, Niagara will be humid, fairly hot and only have a few days of rain out of the ten days I plan on being there - I can't count on the perfect weather that's followed me around for the last few vacations, though a few years ago the intensely hot weather that Jay's wedding took place in can be counted as an anomoly, I hope. No, this trip is going to be all about making time to meet with friends and family, while hopefully taking some time to just have to myself.
With most everything in readiness for the trip, I took some time off today for myself and went to downtown Langford, to sit at a table at a little corner cafe I've passed by for a year but never found time to sit AT for a while. I always wanted to just go there for lunch and people-watch, so today I did. The turkey sandwich was dull but filling, the latte was light and too small for the price, but the seating was perfect.
Aug 16 - The Day Before Annoys
Today I ran errands and generally got final things ready for the trip, spending time around the place as needed. I did get out of the condo around noon, as the crazy woman upstairs was pounding around like there was no tomorrow - she has all the grace of a bull elephant trying to tapdance and does it at all hours of the day( and sometimes night ). So I went outside to soak in the sun in my hammock, figuring it'd be quiet next to a golf course in the afternoon: nope! Three women watching their kids play in the track-court were actually louder than the children, blathering on about the most inane things at such a volume that even headphones couldn't drown them out. So I went next door to the( former )Bean to relax outside on the patio as I have done so many times before with a tea and cookie... but that was not to be either. At first I ignored the over-perfumed woman sitting nearby as she chatted on her phone loudly, but eventually I had to move to face her directly and indicated via looks that she could better pursue her business needs at full volume elsewhere; point to me. Yet no sooner had she left than another woman at down to sip a coffee( unlike the first )and flipped open HER cell to chat with a friend... for a full half-hour, about nothing at all. Disgusted, I left for home to take a nap and then pack before an early night... maybe this was just BC trying to hurry me on my way to ON tomorrow AM? Perhaps... I'm able to ignore annoyances for the most part, but when people are shouting into their phones or at the world for long periods of time, human nature is such that you want to shout back. I won't, so I leave... in this case, the province!
Aug 17 - Arrival in Ontario!
Travel days always feel longer somehow, especially when they include time changes. I was up at 4am BC time and out the door soon after to catch my 7am flight; the airport here on Vancouver Island is less than an hour away even in heavy traffic, but I made it there in plenty of time. I did manage to annoy a security guard by handing him my empty tea from Timmy's, but hey: I needed it this early and there were no garbages provided - who knew? It was a brief 1-hr flight to Calgary and an almost immediate transfer to the Hamilton flight, with a bright daytime sunlight window-view of Canada the whole way. My seatmates on both flights snoozed, so I alternated between watching TV episodes on my ASUS tablet and looking out at the endless varigated green vistas of Canada rolling by below. Lucas was able to pick me up from the airport soon after I landed( thanks, my friend!!! )and I was in St. Catharines well before dinner, being dropped off at where I am being graciously hosted while in Niagara at my good friend Josh & Mandy's. Of course, I ended up at the Kilt for the evening; Honest Frankie was playing and was happy to see me, as he was leaving the next day for PEI so good timing all around there. Many of my friends came out to see me off the bat: Lucas, Brian, Mike, Simon, Dan, Katie, Shawna and Nigel... they were all there and some stayed until closer to midnight.
Aug 18 - A WHOLE day at the Kilt? Sweet!
Breakfast was at the Sunrise Cafe on Hartzel Rd, with my good friends Josh and Dan. I had some of the finest french toast anywhere, in a place I miss more than most restaurants I've been to. Soon after lunch, the rest of my day was steered away from Starbuck's on Lake St by none other than Lucas who wondered if we'd be better served with drinks after lunch at the Kilt. So down we went, grabbing the VIP seats on the corner and proceeding to watch the sunlight slant ever sharper as the day passed on. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire afternoon and then the entire evening at the Kilt, with drinks arriving regularly and good company throughout; one thing the Kilt has never had a dearth of is pretty, competent help in all the years I've been going there. By all accounts, I was rather more entertaining than most people there( I thought so too! )and I smiled the the whole time - a rarity for me. the weather was excellent, with a heavy downpour early in the day leading to perfect cool evening weather - perfect for sitting on the Kilt's patio to reminisce about Things Past and muse about Things Yet To Pass. Still and all, I eventually headed home; I had had more drinks in the last 48 hours than I'd had in the past year in total... and being out of practice, I had foolishly neglected to keep up my water intake. So, on to the next day...
Aug 19 - Ouch, my stomach...
There's something to be said for experience, as well as learning from the past. On my 30th birthday( held at the Kilt, naturally )the drinks flowed so frequently and fast that I regretted it for several long, uncomfortable days afterwards where I did naught but sleep and hydrate. Today was a similar experience, in that my head was fine... but my now more-sensitive stomach was certainly NOT. I thought I was fine when I woke: a clear head, a little tired and thirsty but otherwise okay. No sooner had I headed out to berakfast when I felt my stomach wake up and complain that it wanted to part company with me for a while to recover - that's bad. I met Lucas and Rene at Frego's on Lake St along with Josh, Mandy and Aria... but I couldn't eat; I broke out into a cold sweat( literally! )at the thought. I did manage to nibble some dry toast and sip some OJ, but I endured the smiles and good-natured ribbing at my expense as I watched everyone else enjoy their breakfasts, until I could be driven back home and hydrate myself into a 4-hour slumber. I was feeling much more normal by dinnertime, when I headed out for the evening again after picking up my car rental - see a pattern here? Tonight though, we started out at Shoeless Joe's on Geneva St, which I picked because of the name. My friends and I arrived, ordered a drink each... and then we put down the menus once we had eyeballed the prices - ouch! We quickly left for the Kilt again; Matt, Josh, Rene Lucas and I were joined later on by Paulino and Ryan. We had a patio seat and the place was hopping, but I kept my drink level to a minimum and made it through just fine, thank-you-very-much. It was definitely a shorter, more relaxed night that saw a lot of people-watching as well as a few promises made, one of which was for me to really dig into getting into shape before the year is out. I may have lost a fair amount of weight over the last few years, but overall I haven't done much else for my physical health, which Paulino pointed out in his usual competitive way. Which is good to see, as I've known for a while now that I need to move beyond just 'being me' and try to get my health on an upward path, before too many years pass and it starts declining naturally with age.
Aug 20 - Saturday On The Road
Wow, can it be? Breakfast at the Sunrise Cafe twice in a week? Well, I shared a meal with Dan, having some time before heading up to Bolton, ON to visit my friend Dag. I followed the directions of my Garmin GPS most of the way there, with a minor hiccup when I arrived in-town that was resolved with a phone call - nice how that works. I visited for a few hours with he and his girl Barb, in a lovely home with a rather verdant backyard by a river. It was really, really good to see him, as it had easily been ten years or more since we last got together. I'm pleased to find that with friends like Dag, the years in between meetings matter very little, though the topics of conversation do tend to change as one ages. Neither he or I have kids, but we both still maintain the same worldviews, sense of humour and a love of tech, so it was far too soon when I had to leave for Jason and Ruth-Ann's place in Georgetown. I left feeling reconnected to Dag which I was really happy to find - score one for keeping in touch by 'net!
It was a bit of an adventure getting to Georgetown, as my GPS battery died 3/4 of the way there, so I had to stop and charge it at a gas station which elicited some odd looks from passers-by. After another quick phone call to confirm their address( which I'd had wrong, BTW )I did arrive a little late at Jay's place around dinnertime, just in time in fact for leftovers - something I am always happy to help clean up with! Jason's mother and her boyfriend were there, so we all spent a few hours visiting and catching up before they had to leave and baby Anya was put to bed. More hours were spent g33king out with Jason, as we compared the merits of our respective Android tablets - he has a Nook Colour, a great machine in a 7" format that is highly moddable and one I had considered myself before I got my Transformer. We traded app names and talked about many other things until close to the witching hour, when our respective days caught up with us both. They kindly put me up on a couch downstairs, as their home renovations are almost done and the guest room was full of stored items anon.
Aug 21 - Sunday Beersbie - MISSED it!
Ah, Sundays... times when you want to sleep in, but also jump out of bed to get things done before the weekend is truly past. Today leaned more towards the relaxed, as I breakfasted at Jay and Ruth-Ann's place then spent the morning with them and their lovely new bundle of joy Anya. They are also the proud owners of a hairless Egyptian cat named Cleo, who was a cuddle and didn't take much getting used to as she had a gentle nature. It was great to see them both and their new arrival, who has a lot of really fun toys that I regretted I was too old to play with anymore - brought back memories, they did. All too soon I had to leave, with definite plans to visit again as soon as I could - like everyone I have seen in ON so far( EVERY one! )they asked when I would be moving back to Ontario... and I don't have an answer for that. Yet.
The drive back was another adventure, as I was chased by not one but TWO large angry stormfronts: black clouds and lashing rain that spawned a tornado in Goderich, ON - a town not too far from where I was. I made it to Niagara somewhat later than I had hoped, thanks to having to stop for an accident in Hamilton ON( nobody looked to be injured, thankfully )and the fact that I made a stop for lunch and gas... so it was closer to 4pm that I rolled into town.
Which stank, as I was supposed to attend the annual Beersbie Tourney today, which I had thought started at 4pm-ish. As it turns out, it began at 2:30pm and when I arrived at 4:30, it was literally the very end of things: Shawna was taking her final shot and won the tourney in the pouring rain as I got out of my rental car and crossed over huge puddles to congratulate her. Simon, Rose, Lucas, Dan, Shawna, Nigel, Matt and his girlfriend all went inside with me to wait out the rain a bit, then watched me play an 'exhibition' game with Simon... we both shot terribly and ended up with a 1-1 score and a draw game by the time the rain returned. What else could we do but take things down the road to the Kilt? It was only supposed to be for 'one drink' but as usual our stay ended up being until well after 10pm, when only Lucas and I were left talking with a large-sized nice guy by the name of Tim. By that point I had had more than a fair share of drinks, but I'd also had an entire pitcher of water so the effects were mitigated... despite being gulled into having at least 2 shots with the very pretty waitress who, I am told, rarely does even one shot with people, even regulars. Point to moi, thanks - it helped make up for my bitter disappointment at travelling thousands of miles and not being a part of Beersbie in any meaningfully competitive way. I left for my bed that night in a far better mood than I had arrived in, despite the rain... heck, I even slept fairly well too!
I'm writing this late on Monday afternoon, as I was too worn out last night to complete my update. The time change has caught up with me and I'm not sleeping fully thoughout the nights, so I'm planning on catching some rest as I can during the remainder of the week. Lots to do, but also lots of time to do it in - vacation rocks!
Aug 15 - 48 hours until ON
It's all about the anticipation, folks. I've checked and double-checked things here, ensuring that my car rental details are in place, that I have my ticket info for the flights( just in case )and that I've updated / added all the people I can think of to my email lists to get the word out independantly of FBook - which not everyone is on. I've packed up a large suitcase and a small carry-on, with the necessities and a few frivolities that will make the trip easier in many ways, though again I am going to travel light and forgo my usual multiple changes of clothes for any weather eventuality. From what I can see, Niagara will be humid, fairly hot and only have a few days of rain out of the ten days I plan on being there - I can't count on the perfect weather that's followed me around for the last few vacations, though a few years ago the intensely hot weather that Jay's wedding took place in can be counted as an anomoly, I hope. No, this trip is going to be all about making time to meet with friends and family, while hopefully taking some time to just have to myself.
With most everything in readiness for the trip, I took some time off today for myself and went to downtown Langford, to sit at a table at a little corner cafe I've passed by for a year but never found time to sit AT for a while. I always wanted to just go there for lunch and people-watch, so today I did. The turkey sandwich was dull but filling, the latte was light and too small for the price, but the seating was perfect.
Aug 16 - The Day Before Annoys
Today I ran errands and generally got final things ready for the trip, spending time around the place as needed. I did get out of the condo around noon, as the crazy woman upstairs was pounding around like there was no tomorrow - she has all the grace of a bull elephant trying to tapdance and does it at all hours of the day( and sometimes night ). So I went outside to soak in the sun in my hammock, figuring it'd be quiet next to a golf course in the afternoon: nope! Three women watching their kids play in the track-court were actually louder than the children, blathering on about the most inane things at such a volume that even headphones couldn't drown them out. So I went next door to the( former )Bean to relax outside on the patio as I have done so many times before with a tea and cookie... but that was not to be either. At first I ignored the over-perfumed woman sitting nearby as she chatted on her phone loudly, but eventually I had to move to face her directly and indicated via looks that she could better pursue her business needs at full volume elsewhere; point to me. Yet no sooner had she left than another woman at down to sip a coffee( unlike the first )and flipped open HER cell to chat with a friend... for a full half-hour, about nothing at all. Disgusted, I left for home to take a nap and then pack before an early night... maybe this was just BC trying to hurry me on my way to ON tomorrow AM? Perhaps... I'm able to ignore annoyances for the most part, but when people are shouting into their phones or at the world for long periods of time, human nature is such that you want to shout back. I won't, so I leave... in this case, the province!
Aug 17 - Arrival in Ontario!
Travel days always feel longer somehow, especially when they include time changes. I was up at 4am BC time and out the door soon after to catch my 7am flight; the airport here on Vancouver Island is less than an hour away even in heavy traffic, but I made it there in plenty of time. I did manage to annoy a security guard by handing him my empty tea from Timmy's, but hey: I needed it this early and there were no garbages provided - who knew? It was a brief 1-hr flight to Calgary and an almost immediate transfer to the Hamilton flight, with a bright daytime sunlight window-view of Canada the whole way. My seatmates on both flights snoozed, so I alternated between watching TV episodes on my ASUS tablet and looking out at the endless varigated green vistas of Canada rolling by below. Lucas was able to pick me up from the airport soon after I landed( thanks, my friend!!! )and I was in St. Catharines well before dinner, being dropped off at where I am being graciously hosted while in Niagara at my good friend Josh & Mandy's. Of course, I ended up at the Kilt for the evening; Honest Frankie was playing and was happy to see me, as he was leaving the next day for PEI so good timing all around there. Many of my friends came out to see me off the bat: Lucas, Brian, Mike, Simon, Dan, Katie, Shawna and Nigel... they were all there and some stayed until closer to midnight.
Aug 18 - A WHOLE day at the Kilt? Sweet!
Breakfast was at the Sunrise Cafe on Hartzel Rd, with my good friends Josh and Dan. I had some of the finest french toast anywhere, in a place I miss more than most restaurants I've been to. Soon after lunch, the rest of my day was steered away from Starbuck's on Lake St by none other than Lucas who wondered if we'd be better served with drinks after lunch at the Kilt. So down we went, grabbing the VIP seats on the corner and proceeding to watch the sunlight slant ever sharper as the day passed on. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire afternoon and then the entire evening at the Kilt, with drinks arriving regularly and good company throughout; one thing the Kilt has never had a dearth of is pretty, competent help in all the years I've been going there. By all accounts, I was rather more entertaining than most people there( I thought so too! )and I smiled the the whole time - a rarity for me. the weather was excellent, with a heavy downpour early in the day leading to perfect cool evening weather - perfect for sitting on the Kilt's patio to reminisce about Things Past and muse about Things Yet To Pass. Still and all, I eventually headed home; I had had more drinks in the last 48 hours than I'd had in the past year in total... and being out of practice, I had foolishly neglected to keep up my water intake. So, on to the next day...
Aug 19 - Ouch, my stomach...
There's something to be said for experience, as well as learning from the past. On my 30th birthday( held at the Kilt, naturally )the drinks flowed so frequently and fast that I regretted it for several long, uncomfortable days afterwards where I did naught but sleep and hydrate. Today was a similar experience, in that my head was fine... but my now more-sensitive stomach was certainly NOT. I thought I was fine when I woke: a clear head, a little tired and thirsty but otherwise okay. No sooner had I headed out to berakfast when I felt my stomach wake up and complain that it wanted to part company with me for a while to recover - that's bad. I met Lucas and Rene at Frego's on Lake St along with Josh, Mandy and Aria... but I couldn't eat; I broke out into a cold sweat( literally! )at the thought. I did manage to nibble some dry toast and sip some OJ, but I endured the smiles and good-natured ribbing at my expense as I watched everyone else enjoy their breakfasts, until I could be driven back home and hydrate myself into a 4-hour slumber. I was feeling much more normal by dinnertime, when I headed out for the evening again after picking up my car rental - see a pattern here? Tonight though, we started out at Shoeless Joe's on Geneva St, which I picked because of the name. My friends and I arrived, ordered a drink each... and then we put down the menus once we had eyeballed the prices - ouch! We quickly left for the Kilt again; Matt, Josh, Rene Lucas and I were joined later on by Paulino and Ryan. We had a patio seat and the place was hopping, but I kept my drink level to a minimum and made it through just fine, thank-you-very-much. It was definitely a shorter, more relaxed night that saw a lot of people-watching as well as a few promises made, one of which was for me to really dig into getting into shape before the year is out. I may have lost a fair amount of weight over the last few years, but overall I haven't done much else for my physical health, which Paulino pointed out in his usual competitive way. Which is good to see, as I've known for a while now that I need to move beyond just 'being me' and try to get my health on an upward path, before too many years pass and it starts declining naturally with age.
Aug 20 - Saturday On The Road
Wow, can it be? Breakfast at the Sunrise Cafe twice in a week? Well, I shared a meal with Dan, having some time before heading up to Bolton, ON to visit my friend Dag. I followed the directions of my Garmin GPS most of the way there, with a minor hiccup when I arrived in-town that was resolved with a phone call - nice how that works. I visited for a few hours with he and his girl Barb, in a lovely home with a rather verdant backyard by a river. It was really, really good to see him, as it had easily been ten years or more since we last got together. I'm pleased to find that with friends like Dag, the years in between meetings matter very little, though the topics of conversation do tend to change as one ages. Neither he or I have kids, but we both still maintain the same worldviews, sense of humour and a love of tech, so it was far too soon when I had to leave for Jason and Ruth-Ann's place in Georgetown. I left feeling reconnected to Dag which I was really happy to find - score one for keeping in touch by 'net!
It was a bit of an adventure getting to Georgetown, as my GPS battery died 3/4 of the way there, so I had to stop and charge it at a gas station which elicited some odd looks from passers-by. After another quick phone call to confirm their address( which I'd had wrong, BTW )I did arrive a little late at Jay's place around dinnertime, just in time in fact for leftovers - something I am always happy to help clean up with! Jason's mother and her boyfriend were there, so we all spent a few hours visiting and catching up before they had to leave and baby Anya was put to bed. More hours were spent g33king out with Jason, as we compared the merits of our respective Android tablets - he has a Nook Colour, a great machine in a 7" format that is highly moddable and one I had considered myself before I got my Transformer. We traded app names and talked about many other things until close to the witching hour, when our respective days caught up with us both. They kindly put me up on a couch downstairs, as their home renovations are almost done and the guest room was full of stored items anon.
Aug 21 - Sunday Beersbie - MISSED it!
Ah, Sundays... times when you want to sleep in, but also jump out of bed to get things done before the weekend is truly past. Today leaned more towards the relaxed, as I breakfasted at Jay and Ruth-Ann's place then spent the morning with them and their lovely new bundle of joy Anya. They are also the proud owners of a hairless Egyptian cat named Cleo, who was a cuddle and didn't take much getting used to as she had a gentle nature. It was great to see them both and their new arrival, who has a lot of really fun toys that I regretted I was too old to play with anymore - brought back memories, they did. All too soon I had to leave, with definite plans to visit again as soon as I could - like everyone I have seen in ON so far( EVERY one! )they asked when I would be moving back to Ontario... and I don't have an answer for that. Yet.
The drive back was another adventure, as I was chased by not one but TWO large angry stormfronts: black clouds and lashing rain that spawned a tornado in Goderich, ON - a town not too far from where I was. I made it to Niagara somewhat later than I had hoped, thanks to having to stop for an accident in Hamilton ON( nobody looked to be injured, thankfully )and the fact that I made a stop for lunch and gas... so it was closer to 4pm that I rolled into town.
Which stank, as I was supposed to attend the annual Beersbie Tourney today, which I had thought started at 4pm-ish. As it turns out, it began at 2:30pm and when I arrived at 4:30, it was literally the very end of things: Shawna was taking her final shot and won the tourney in the pouring rain as I got out of my rental car and crossed over huge puddles to congratulate her. Simon, Rose, Lucas, Dan, Shawna, Nigel, Matt and his girlfriend all went inside with me to wait out the rain a bit, then watched me play an 'exhibition' game with Simon... we both shot terribly and ended up with a 1-1 score and a draw game by the time the rain returned. What else could we do but take things down the road to the Kilt? It was only supposed to be for 'one drink' but as usual our stay ended up being until well after 10pm, when only Lucas and I were left talking with a large-sized nice guy by the name of Tim. By that point I had had more than a fair share of drinks, but I'd also had an entire pitcher of water so the effects were mitigated... despite being gulled into having at least 2 shots with the very pretty waitress who, I am told, rarely does even one shot with people, even regulars. Point to moi, thanks - it helped make up for my bitter disappointment at travelling thousands of miles and not being a part of Beersbie in any meaningfully competitive way. I left for my bed that night in a far better mood than I had arrived in, despite the rain... heck, I even slept fairly well too!
I'm writing this late on Monday afternoon, as I was too worn out last night to complete my update. The time change has caught up with me and I'm not sleeping fully thoughout the nights, so I'm planning on catching some rest as I can during the remainder of the week. Lots to do, but also lots of time to do it in - vacation rocks!
