Toronto, the good, the bad, the ugly

In the past week I have:

• eaten on many-a-patio, once with Kinnon, delicious - what was that place called? I can't remember and it may have been the tastiest mocktini I've ever had
  
• enjoyed many BBQ'd delicacies at Greg and Mo Ying's house, with Claire and John as well...
• watched Basia Bulat from the edge of the stage with Joh-Joh at the Music Gallery
  
• gone to the ROM with Michael, dressed up like a knight
• eaten too many treats from the Brazilian bakery
• gone to Manifesto, watched skateboarders and eaten a schmancy meal with the Dad et co.
  
• had the chance to be peed on my Kristen's dog
• caught up on my trash magazine reading with Belinda, been afraid of the Zodiac and spooked by her basement and been persuaded to eat tooooo much sushi!!!
  
• met my cousin once-removed (?) Imogen and had a gourmet lunch prepared for me :)
• watched Andrew Bird, Plants and Animals at the Opera House
• witnessed a parade of honking taxicabs protesting who knows what
• had lunch on Church with new homeowner Iain
• had a homeless man approach me IN Second Cup, gave him some change and then was told I should get my coffee at Starbucks, because according to him, it's better there
• caught up with Tara, pushed her to just jump and not to worry about the fall...
• bopped my head along to an award winning jazz quartet from Montreal in the sweetest of restaurants with Elise

There are probably other things, but it is past my bedtime and I should go.... 2 more days until Vancouver!!!

We always slice it up like that

I've been in Toronto now for a few days, which is good because now I can finally write about my time in Perth with a bit more perspective. It's always always always good to go home, both to Perth and to Toronto; of course every time I come back I'm torn between these feelings of "It's good to be back" and "Where did that go?! / Nothing should change while I'm away" and "Things have changed which is good but I'm not comfortable with it" and more and more I realize I could never live in Toronto again. Sigh. Let me backtrack.

Perth was good. I remembered this morning when I first moved to Fort McMurray and some guy walked into my school and after talking to him for about 2 minutes he stops me and says "Are you from the Ottawa Valley?" and stunned, I admit that yes, I am, in a way, from the Ottawa Valley. Apparently I have an accent. I guess when I get to NZ I'll be the one with the accent again, but this time a bit more obvious! WIERD. I digress, I'm good at that.

It was good to be back in Perth, where everything is cute and quaint and beautiful and meticulously taken care of, people take pride in their homes and their life and seem pretty content. Nothing much ever seems to happen (excuse me, since I left the bakery moved and a restaurant renamed itself... I'm sure a few people celebrated birthdays and anniversaries... a bridge was vandalized and rebuilt... kids graduated...) but it's kind of comforting that way. I had the chance to meet up with my old friend Emily from high school, which was totally amazing since we hadn't seen each other and really talked for at least 7 or 8 years, and somehow this wasn't an issue. Had a delicious lunch at TABLE in Ottawa and indulged in too much dessert at THYME & AGAIN afterward. Ran into Devrie from high school too. God. It's a small world. Went to visit my cousins Gilly and Gavin, Aunt Jocelyn and Uncle Jim, had a lurvely tea party (with somersaulting entertainment courtesy of Gilly) and even got to play "GO AWAY MONSTERS!!!" Afterwards, as if I hadn't eaten enough, Nik and I went for dinner in Chinatown. I think there were honestly mountains of food on the table enough to feed at least 6 sailors. It was a fantastic day.









While I was in Perth I also had the opportunity to take part in a pig roast. Harry, the coolest 11 year old I know, specially requested a suckling pig and a werewolf cake for his birthday. So, arriving in the middle of the day, I witnessed the building of a fire pit, the construction of 2 metal racks for roasting, and the tying-up of the pig. Most delicious pork I have ever eaten. It's so indescribably good to see Sarah and Darren and the boys and really ridiculously hard to say goodbye.

I also got to spend a bit of time visiting Luke and Amanda (not enough time!!!). Spent a quality day with Paul flying a kite at Conlon farm and drawing pictures and of course having good chats... Thanks for that!

I also have to give mad props to my Grandma who is now surfing the Internet! I am oh-so-very impressed with her. Hopefully she has figured out how to get on this thing called a blog and see the pictures!!!

Of course I got to spend time with me mama as well, out at the new home at Kiwi Gardens. It's a rather surreal setting to live in, acres of rolling hills, trees, coyotes howling at night, beautiful plants and such darkness at night you feel all so alone with the stars. Pretty sweet.

Mum drove me down to Toronto, so she could take my aunt out for her 60th birthday (CONGRATULATIONS CLAIRE!) and we stayed downtown in the only hotel room available to man that night. Apparently everyone in the world wanted to sleep in a hotel in Toronto that night, so we felt extremely privileged to pay a retarded amount of money to stay at the Holiday Inn. THE HOLIDAY INN! Eeps. So while Mum and Claire went to a schmancy restaurant Joh and I ate take-out Sushi and jumped on the hotel beds....

I've been walking around tons, trying to fall back in love with public transit, going to places I used to frequent and finding them shut down or moved or just different. Let me rant for 2 minutes about Toronto:

• it smells
• people are pushy
• i can't see the stars
• everything seems to cost a lot of money
• rich people are VERY rich here and seem to enjoy flaunting it
• poor people are VERY poor
• fashion is cool but everyone cares too much i think
• people ride their bicycles (awesome) but the funny thing is they look like they could just hop off their bike, flip their hair back and walk onto a magazine photo shoot... in Calgary biking requires helmets and spandex. here, high heels, jewelry and a big stylish satchel are encouraged.
  
• it kind of stinks all the time
• lots of people smoke, ick

Okay. Thank you for indulging in my rant. Let's just say that being here makes me appreciate the clean air and smiles that when I see them, in, say, Perth, Ottawa, Calgary, or Nova Scotia...

Anyway. The thing about Toronto is that some of my dearest friends are here, so I can't stay mad at the city for very long. It's been lovely sharing Johanna's new big bed and playing with her roommate's dog Sophie, even if she does pee on me - I must just be so exciting to be around...! I've bought a new camera and once I download the pictures I'll put some up. I had a fantastic dinner with Jessie at her new home (CONGRATS AGAIN JESSIE!) and met her elusive fiancé finally! Michael and I went to the ROM yesterday and even though we didn't get to go in the new crystal wing I did get to dress up like a knight with chainmail and everything! There is documentation of this, I promise.

I also finally got my passport, too. With my VISA! Eeps. This is really happening. This is really too goddamn exciting! Okay, I have to go, I think I have overstayed my welcome at the free Internet breakfast place. Mmmmmm breakfast. Most important meal of the day!

xoxox

More Photos from East Ragged Island

Photos from East Ragged Island

I'm posting in one big chunk because I haven't been on the Inter-web for over a week. How odd.

Thursday, August 30, 2007
or, The Day I Nearly Didn’t Board A Plane at All.

I’m just trying to pull together the last remaining odds and ends before my trip officially begins, or at least the Calgary bit of it ends for now… I’m pretty much done packing, my condo is essentially clean, and all I need to do is sell my car (the girl has been sort of yanking my chain a little so it’s taken longer than I’d hoped) and buy my ticket to NZ. My flight to Halifax leaves at 11pm. It’s going to be a hectic day but I think I can manage.

In the morning, mundane stuff to do, like moving a bed. Boring. Oh! But the lunch afterwards. Mile high BCLT at Belmont Diner. Mmmm. With a mmmmilkshake. I get distracted. I head out to take this girl her new car and it turns into a complicated series of events related to license plates and registries and me trying to cancel my insurance at head office (“No, we only do corporate here”).

In the end, I get my envelope with $3000 cash and a $3200 certified cheque for my car, and I end up at Travel Cuts in Kensington at 5, they close at 6. I think it’s going to work out!

I sit down, talk a little bit with my good friend Eryka (or at least it feels that way at this point) about finalizing my plans, and of course I need my passport. Originally I had thought I’d have time to go home and grab it first, but no such luck. So I fill out a few forms as best I can, hand her $1800 cash for the ticket and run outside to meet Amy who has come to save the day (remember I have no car at this point). She careens around town to get me home in time to pick up my passport **picture Cruella DeVille minus the cruel part**, I grab it and head back to the travel agent. Eryka has kindly offered to stay a bit late for me.

I sit down with I’m sure a whoosh of wind all around me and she tells me it’s going to be a bit more than the original amount and with insurance blahblahblah I need to fork over an extra $1000. Okay, no problem. I reach in my purse to pull out that envelope full of money, and it’s gone. Remember the one that’s going to buy all my plane ticket and probably fund a good portion of fun over the next few months??? Gone. But it’s got to be here somewhere. Or maybe in Amy’s car? Or maybe Eryka found it after I left and put it away for me? No. No. No. None of the above. It’s really gone. My cell phone is ringing but it’s a number I don’t recognize, leave me alone! Rummage through purse some more. Swear in my head some more. Look under the chair some more. Maybe I should call this mystery person back.

Me: Hello, you called my phone?
Him: Yes, Vanessa?
Me; Yes…?
Him: Are you missing something?
Me: Um. YES. (Trying to sound calm).
Him: What is it?
Me: An envelope with $1200 cash and a certified cheque in it.
Him: Well Vanessa, it’s your lucky day. I have it all here.
Me: Ohmygodohmygodohmygod you are my HERO. THANK YOU.
Him: I’m going out but I can meet you at 8:00. Bring I.D.
Me: Where do you live?
Him: Bankview.
Me: Great, that’s right by where I live.
Him: Okay, I’ll talk to you soon. Bye.

I think I must have somehow dumped the envelope out of the car as I jumped out of the car to get my passport. I take a deep breath and carry on. Make plans to get remaining money etc to Eryka. Go to Starbucks in a daze. Enjoy adrenaline pumping through my veins as a side-dish to my Orange Passion Tea Lemonade. Take cab home.

Fast forward a few relatively boring hours and I head over to meet my new favourite person, Miro. For the last few hours I’ve been trying to figure out how I could have possibly lost this envelope but knowing deep down that of course it would happen on a day like today when it’s just go-go-go all day with a billion things on my mind. Still, stupid. I asked Miro if he was just walking around Bankview when he spotted the envelope, and he says “NO! The strangest thing! I never go to Kensington after work. I never go for coffee after work, but today I did! And I’m walking on 10th Street and I look down and see $100 bills all over the ground. People are just walking right by, they’re not stopping. And I see the money I think it must be a joke. Where are the video cameras? So I stop to pick up one of the bills and it’s real, I keep picking them up and they stop at the envelope. So I pick it up and your name is inside.”

I am thankful that I put that insurance form in the envelope because otherwise, no way to track this to me, no phone number for Miro to call, no trip to NZ for me. I am thankful for good people in this world like Miro. At this point Miro is blown away by his own story, amazed that I am leaving on a plane only hours away from taking off, and the whole thing is just incredible. He says “OH MY GOD, this is crazy, give me a hug!!!” and we do and everything is warm and fuzzy. I give him a measly $100 to thank him for his troubles. Then a lady who I assume to be his girlfriend stumbles out of the bedroom wearing a bathrobe, looks at me, and says “Oh! It’s a GIRL” and I take this as my cue to leave. Goodnight Miro. Goodnight Calgary. Goodnight troubles.

And this is the first story of my trip. So I can only hope the stories get more mundane from here on, but they probably won’t.

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September 3, 2007

Enjoyed a lovely walk around the point today with Granny, Mum, Paul and Audrey. It was frightfully windy and my cheeks are all rosy to prove it! Took loads of mediocre photos and collected some sea urchins and a lobster claw and some other shells and things. Walked home and had a delightful cup of tea and lemon loaf with Gran. Maybe a nap is in my near future - it’s so windy and it’s all I can hear outside, it feels super cozy to be all tucked in with the duvet!

Later on we went to visit the neighbourhood lobster fisherman Amos, his wife Irene and their grown-up daughter Lisa. Filled in on some local news and tidbits about the Ragged Island. It feels a bit sad I think, coming back 10 years later and seeing a community shrink? Or did it just feel bigger back then? Seems like things I got used to as a kid have moved on, shut down, or been forced out. No more bowling alley, no more “Grub and Grog” diner (“We don’t serve salad here!”), no more weekly bingo at the Fire Hall (I won $15 once, which seemed like a small fortune when I was 7). But East Ragged Island and neighbouring Lockeport are still as charming as they always were, the smiles still as warming as ever.

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September 5, 2007

Here are some things I accomplished today, in increasing order of importance:

• 3 ‘medium’ Sudoku puzzles
• 2 ridiculously easy crossword puzzles
• Read 4 chapters of my New Zealand travel guide
• Almost won at a game of Wizard
• Made and ate fishcakes with fresh local haddock (Sacrilegious? Maybe? But topical…)

And tomorrow, planned activities include:

• Lunch or dinner at the White Gull in Lockeport (oooh, field trip!)
• Game of candlepin bowling?
  
• Walk around the point?
• Cooking with Gran to help her prepare for the imminent arrival of houseguests... I can only hope there is a pie involved
• Nap?
• Rematch of Wizard?

I’m sorry if you’re working and reading this but I’m taking great pleasure in my chockablock full of nothing plans for the next few days. It’s utterly delightful.

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And now, I'm on a ferry, somewhere between Digby and St. John, rocking back and forth, wondering how long before I turn a charming shade of green and run to the side of the boat?