BUSY DECEMBER!

Who is Stephen that he inspired an entire avenue to be named after him? And not just any pedestrian friendly, Yorkville-isque road, but one with so many good places to hang out! The steak I had at Centini during our department’s Christmas dinner was one of the best slabs I’ve ever had. The boisterous conversation and delicious Shiraz accompanying this meal played a part in garnishing it. The following day, after-work drinks were to be had at Belgo, a French brasserie (not to be confused with a French brassiere). It’s always exciting for me to meet another triathlete, particularly one who is a CMA and “accidentally” got her brother’s fiancée drunk the night before the wedding.

The only time I’ve been in the Calgary Zoo was during the Calgary Marathon, when part of the route took me through. Pacing myself, while switch backing on this mainly uphill part of the course, meant that I couldn’t really pay too much attention to the animals. EPCOR organized a social event at the zoo and I got a chance to join the “Behind The Scenes” event. Where I got to meet Da Bears. Bear encounters are a real risk when venturing into the Alberta backcountry, so they have been on my mind a lot this summer. I didn’t run into one, probably because I constantly had my bear bell which annoyed my hiking companions to no end, causing them to shout curses at me, and thus scaring away any nearby bears. Thus, the prospect of meeting one of these mythical creatures caused me great excitement! Prior to visiting the bears in their enclosure (fancy name for prison), we were given an educational talk (fancy name for lecture) about bears. I learned a lot! Bears aren’t true hibernators but go into a state of lethargic torpor during the winter months, meaning it’s not a good idea to go and poke a sleeping bear in the winter time, because they will wake up and terminate the annoyance rather swiftly. They then passed around a plate containing plasticized bear feces (allegedly clean) that had bits of plastic shopping bags in it, highlighting the impact that humans have on bears and their way of living. At the enclosure, we saw a large black bear, resting its head on its paws. It saw us and, though we enticed it with food, it didn’t budge. All of a sudden, we hear a rustle behind us. Luckily, a double electrified fence separates us from the grizzly that crept up on us. It was interested in the bowl of treats that the zoo keeper had, tasty dog milk bones that would also succeed in maintaining the bear’s inspiring dental hygiene routine. It would sniff around, sit back on its rump and hold up its paws as if in submission. Then, it would launch itself up onto its hind legs and grab the food that was being passed through the fence on an extended pair of tongs. Watching the grizzly eat inspired us to become hungry, so we were all herded into the human enclosure known as the dining room where we lined up like well behaved little animals in front of the trough (fancy name for buffet table). And just like how they cheered when the grizzly bear entertained us, the same parents were now cheering their own little children who were helping out in a musical skit put on by the zoo, dressed up, ironically, as a grizzly bear! Full from the delicious meal of Flap Jacks and the irony of everything that surrounded me, I went to see the rest of the zoo with C and R.









This is usually what I see in the mirror when I wake up every morning.

My second winter in Calgary is marked by my second condo social. Having just been accepted to the Board of Directors, I figured that it would be a good thing to show up. And nothing adds street cred than being fashionably late! Still, I got to mingle a bit and sip on a nice Guinness (haven’t had one from on draught for a while). I was talking to one of the other residents who just came back from Panama. He went with GAP, an adventure group outfitter based in T dot. They keep things simple, connecting you with the locals and providing a range of programs that are off the beaten tourist path. He had an amazing time. This, along with my sister’s eco-tour trip to Costa Rica next week, is making think that this would be a good way to spend some time off.

A baby wails and vomits everything she eats. The parents start to worry and find themselves waiting in the emergency room until 3:00 a.m. By the time the doctor sees them and they return home, it’s 5:30 a.m. Probably 30 minutes before he was supposed to get up anyways for a day of riding at Sunshine. Understandably, G didn’t make it to snowboarding. M is okay, resting up and getting her fluids. So, Sunshine was delayed by about an hour, but Patience was rewarded by, well, sunshine. On a clear day, seeing the sun come up on Calgary is a breathtaking experience. And once again, another amazing riding day! One lesson learned: blue caution signs are not to be ignored. Pride once again got the better of me as 2 punk kid riders grinded to a halt in front of me. I zoomed passed them, shooting off a couple of evil glances, but failed to comprehend the caution sign in front of me. Before I knew it, I was flying off the lip of a 15 foot drop. Yeah, the landing was not so graceful. For the rest of the day, I did my best to avoid any of these signs. On the way home, we see 2 other riders hitchhiking. I have never picked up hitchhikers in my life, but something prompted me to do so this time. It’s neat to see how certain events happen which could pave the way to an opportunity to be a blessing, literally, down the road. Who knew that a 5 month old baby getting sick would lead to 2 seniors from Canmore Collegiate getting a ride home from complete strangers? I already had the roof rack set up and there was already room for 2 more passengers. Yes, the thought of a possible mugging or worse (still can’t shed that Toronto-induced anthropophobia) did cross my mind, but, at that one moment when I decided to stop, I realized how all the previous events were hints of a blessing to come. Yes, my anal neuroticism did agitate me for not being able to keep my morning’s schedule as I had envisioned it, despite the beautiful sunrise that was, as if, given to me as compensation for waiting. It is so easy to focus on one’s self and be oblivious to something more meaningful that is about to happen.

Someone should get smacked upside the head! For someone who rarely uses his dishwasher (to me, it’s a glorified drying rack), they should make the labels clearer. How am I supposed to know that DISHWASHING DETERGENT is not the same as DISHWASHER DETERGENT. My washer now has a case of the rabies, spewing out foam every time I try to run the rinse cycle. For this to happen at the end of an already long day and seeing that my dishes ARE STILL DIRTY, I’m ready to go postal. Or emo. Thanks to D who stayed and helped me clear out the foam.

Good luck to C on her Linguistics exam tomorrow.