On Friday I'd arranged to accompany James to work so I could use the car. I didn't actually drive it far, but I checked off the two most important things on my list for that day: buying strawberries from Shouldice Farms' stand along Woodroffe, and dropping off a box of donations at the Moodie Drive Thrift Store. I told someone just recently that I prefer to leave stuff at that location, because the staff seem so appreciative, calling out a cheery "Thank you!" after donators. Strangely, nobody was staffing the drop-off area this time. Maybe because it was a special discount-with-Web-coupon day and every available person was required in the store. Or maybe Salvation Army is still recovering from the strike earlier this year. Other items of note: I received and made phone calls to family members, and I sprayed leather protector on the coral-colored shoes I bought in May. I'd used the special cleaner on them Thursday, to remove any remaining grit from our excursion to downtown Montreal during F1 Grand Prix weekend. (More about that some other time.)
Saturday morning James and I had a breakfast date at IKEA around 9:00 a.m. He hadn't seen the new and improved IKEA yet, so after our
Sunday morning came all too soon and all too early. I didn't sleep well--lots of bizarre dreams, no details of which I could remember except for a punchline that involved tube socks. (Your guess is as good as mine.) I woke James up by laughing in my sleep, and his "What's happening?!" of course woke me up in turn. He left home for the RC race, and I raced around the house so I'd be ready when a friend gave me a lift to church just before 10:00 a.m. After the service we walked across the road along with other Sequoia congregants to volunteer at the Barrhaven Canada Day, held at Clarke Fields. My friend and I had signed up for a 3-hour shift with the garbage and recycling team, which meant we circulated around the park, exchanging fresh, empty bags for full ones, and hauling the latter to the respective large bins bordering the access road. I've been tanning (fake'n'bake) since February, but thanks to sun and sandals on Sunday, I finally sport tan lines on my feet.
There are times when I think it would be great to rent a kid for a day. Canada Day was one of those times. There were a lot of cool activities: inflatable spheres (giant hamster balls for humans), face painting, etc. Little Ray's Reptile Zoo had a tent set up, too, and I tried something I'd never done before: stroked a snake. The Little Ray's rep said it was like touching a leather wallet, and I'd have to agree with her that that's the closest analogy I can think of. I also touched a turtle.
After a lemonade break at my new friend's place, she brought me home around 6:00 p.m.--shortly after James had pulled in, because he was still unloading his gear. We barbecued a quick supper, and crashed on the basement couch. He put on Senna, a documentary tracing the (arguably too-short) life of Ayrton Senna, three-time Formula One World Champion and uncle of Bruno Senna, current F1 driver. I enjoyed watching it--I'm fascinated by the lives of other people in general, not just celebrities--but it left me in a melancholy mood. The FIA has improved safety standards as a direct result, though, if one's looking to find the positive in his demise.
We'd already agreed beforehand that we would not head downtown for the Parliament Hill fireworks. The time (or is it times?) that we went, getting there has been fine, but coming back on public transit (free after 10:00 p.m.) has not been pleasant. Packed in like sardines, with lots of raunchy teens and twenty-somethings talking about partying and puking. And OC Transpo is the recommended way--and pretty much only rational way--to cope with all the road closures and on-street parking bans. However, there are quite a few alternatives to downtown when it comes to fireworks displays: Barrhaven, Kanata, Andrew Hayden Park, etc. At 8:30 p.m. I was all too happy to stay curled up on the couch in our dimly lit basement. By 9:55 p.m., having heard a few crackles and pops around the neighborhood (quite a few somebodies have their own backyard shows), I changed my mind. I begged James to drive us to the Strandherd Park & Ride/Parc-o-bus (which is where I watched them in 2011) to watch the tail end of the Barrhaven fireworks. He chose the Home Depot parking lot instead. I was satisfied, although it seemed to me that the federal government might have rerouted some of the budget to the (controversial) War of 1812 commemorative events. I was certain that they'd lasted for 30 minutes last year; this year it was over at 10:17 p.m. Only one thing detracted from the delightful pyrotechnics (the streamers are my fave): the person listening to the mournful ballad in the neighboring vehicle with the windows down. (!) So it goes.
Monday morning also dawned bright and early, relatively speaking. Ellen & Dale K. & family had arrived in Ottawa for Canada Day and had just enough time to fit in a brunch with us at Zak's Diner in the ByWard Market before their next appointment. The food, ordered off the "Canada Day" menu, was good, if overpriced. (We figure Zak's hid their regular menus purely for profit--nothing like declaring "open season" on tourists.) We had a great visit. I've never seen such well-behaved kids!
The rest of the day was anticlimactic. If I'd have been in Winnipeg, I would have done my best to persuade Jacquie to spend a day at the beach. Instead, I dredged deep and found just enough will power to put together some strawberry shortcake for a deferred dessert. Duane & Celina telephoned from their dock to catch us up on all the latest in their lives, so we concluded our day similarly to how we'd commenced it: with an enjoyable visit with friends.
It was a mighty fine long weekend, mighty fine indeed.
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