2016 Nuit Blanche

Peter and I went to Nuit Blanche this year. It's the 11th year it's been held in Toronto and the 11th time I've gone. This was Peter's first time though. Normally he's in Hong Kong by this time. But, this year, he's staying a little longer.

This is the first year that Scotiabank hasn't been a sponsor. In fact, they dropped their sponsorship of a number of events this year including the Toronto Caribbean Carnival and Buskerfest. Lean times in the banking business I guess.

The weather this year was great. Especially since they had forecast 80% chance of rain Friday through Sunday. It was pretty much dry and warm enough to walk around the whole night without a jacket if you so desired. Weather-wise, there was some fog that covered the tops of the buildings downtown, but that was about it.

I met Peter at Yonge and Eglinton and we took the subway down together. We shared a TTC Day Pass at $12. I have to say, we didn't take full advantage of it, choosing to walk almost our entire route. Besides coming and going on the subway, we only took one extra streetcar ride from Harbourfront to Union Station.

Our first stop was at City Hall. There were three exhibits there. But, one was inside and there was a long line to get in, so we skipped it. That's the thing with many of the indoor installations - there's almost always a long line to get in. With those ones I normally take a pass.

Over the past couple of years or so I used to plan my route out according to whatever I was interested in seeing. I'd go online or, in the early years, check the paper programme and map out my route that way. Now I just see where most things are clustered and work my way around the city that way.

This year there were installations around Yorkville heading west along Bloor to St. George. Also, there were some at Toronto City Hall; others up and down Bay Street; some at north and south around McCaul/John Street; and a bunch at the Harbourfront.

My original plan was to hit City Hall, then go south on Bay, hit the Harbourfront and come back up Simcoe/John/McCaul. We sort of did it backwards instead.

Over the 10+ hours we were out, we ended up walking around 25 kilometres (from 7:00 p.m. to just after 5:00 a.m.). We stopped a few times to rest, and one more time for poutine. Still, by the end, we were totally bushed.

I have to say, Nuit Blanche isn't quite as interesting and creative as it once was. Maybe the lack of funding had something to do with it. There used to be more large installations in which the audience could participate and ones with performers and such. This year there we saw quite a few video exhibitions. Not so interesting.

I still enjoy walking around the city all night looking at things. So I'll keep coming back. It's sort of a tradition for me now.

Yes, it's true... We bought a Canoe

I don't know how it happened, but Peter and I bought a canoe. We were discussing it on WhatsApp on Thursday night/Friday morning. By late Saturday morning we had one in our possession.

It was a whirlwind affair. We had gone canoe-camping twice this summer and enjoyed it. Late Thursday night we mused about buying a used one. Peter looked on-line and found we had missed our chance with many of the outfitters who sold their rental stock at the end of the season.

1:03 a.m. Peter sends me a link on how to buy a canoe (the different kinds for running rivers or paddling lakes or whatever; and the different materials like fibreglass or Kevlar etc.).

1:21 a.m. Now he sends a link about how to care for/store your canoe. It's best to store it indoors out of the sun (to prevent UV damage) and preferably off the ground. Though, both of us live in condominiums, so that might be a problem.

1:43 a.m. he sends a link about the Souris River Canoes - Quetico 17 canoe. It's a lightweight Kevlar canoe that Killarney Outfitters sell refurbished for $2,585, plus tax (new is $3,680). Again, they are sold out. Boooo.

1:54 a.m. he finds the same model for sale by owner in St. Catharines for $2,400. What a deal!

1:54 a.m. to 2:18 a.m. We discuss the pros and cons of buying a canoe. Peter sends the owner a e-mail asking him if we could go by on Saturday to see it.

Friday evening. The Foodie Group meets at Peter's place for dinner. They make fun of us for wanting to buy a canoe without even knowing where we're going to store it. It know... it does sound kind of silly.

My sister and parents both have houses, but no garages, only carports. I have some friends in Richmond Hill that have houses with garages. I'm assuming one of them will have space. That's my big plan.

Wally, the owner of the canoe agrees to meet us at his house in St. Catharines at 10:00 a.m.

I meet Peter at his condo at around 8:30 a.m. He stops at two bank machines on our way to the highway to get cash. We arrive at Wally's house at around 10:30.

The canoe is in reasonable shape. He's had it for a number of years and there are superficial scratches on the bottom. Wally is an experienced canoeist. The Quetico 17 is his third canoe. Unfortunately he's feeling his age and has decided to give up the sport. That's why he's selling.

After a brief discussion Peter and I look at each other and ask, should we do it? Of course we should.

Peter offers Wally $2,200 and he accepts. Now that he realizes this part of his life is over he's teary-eyed. He's been canoeing for many years.

We exchange the money and shake hands. After we mount the canoe on Peter's car Wally asks if he can take one last photo. Then we're off. Proud new owners of a fantastic used canoe.

Now we have to find a place to store it.

Thankfully, Emily's mom has agreed to let us store it in her garage temporarily. In the summer she parks her car on the driveway. But, when winter comes, she's going to park it inside.

We meet Emily at her mum's place and bring the canoe into the garage. It's huge (17-feet long and 3-feet wide). It pretty much takes up the whole space of the little one-car garage. I'm concerned the garage door doesn't lock. Anyone can flip the door up and walkout with our super-light (44-lb) canoe.

I make alternate arrangements later that day.

Even though Jan and Amy have a 3-car garage, they don't have space at their place. Their two vehicles take up two spaces and they have other stuff stored in the third space. Thankfully, Daphne, comes to the rescue.

After having dinner with Jan and Amy and Vince and Linda for their (Vince and Linda's) birthdays. I meet up with Daphne at her house. I thought she had a one-car garage, but was happy to discover it was a 2-car one.

As well, it has a large, raised shelf at the back. So, even with two vehicles parked inside, there's room enough for a long canoe. And the garage doors lock. Even better.

We haven't brought it over yet. Probably later in the week. Now to buy paddles. And, for myself, a PFD.

Last Saturday's Eating Adventure

Peter's friend, Rizvan, visited from the United Arab Emirates last week. On Saturday Peter posted in our WhatsApp group seeing who was interested in grabbing a Donair for lunch. For those of you who don't know, I supposed they can be best described as an East Coast variation of a Greek Gyros.

Even though there are restaurants that have them here in Toronto, Peter, wanted to try a place called Halifax Donair. One of his co-workers from the Maritimes said they're the best there. When we checked on-line we found they had two locations - one in Burlington and one in Milton. Neither of them close. To make matters worse, Environment Canada had issued a tornado warning for the GTA. So it would be an effort to get out there to say the least.

We decided on going to the Burlington location. Just because we thought it would be less boring than going to Milton (sorry, Milton). According to Waze it was supposed to take about an hour. From Peter's place we took the 401 to the 427 to the QEW. Along the way we did encounter bouts of heavy rain which slowed things down.

As we neared our destination Waze suggested getting off the highway which was clogged up. We took a few local streets and arrived at the restaurant a bit before 2:30. Unfortunately when we pulled up in front we discovered they were closed for three weeks for summer vacation. Really?

There wasn't much we could do except check Peter's smart phone for an alternative. Eventually we ended up just down the street at a local fish and chips shop named, Thistle Fish & Chips. We each had halibut and chips at $15.25. Peter also ordered a small bowl of mushy peas for $2.75.

After that we had a hankering for sweets. So we headed back east into Oakville to the Danish Pastry House. Peter had gone there before. We shared three pastries and ordered three coffees to wash it down.

Now what? After having lunch and dessert, what to do? How about dinner? This was actually pre-planned. Earlier Peter had arranged to meet Roger and Patsy and Paul for Malaysian food at Restoran Malaysia at Major Mackenzie and Bayview in Richmond Hill. So we headed up there.

Dinner was good. We ordered quite a bit of food. From sea bass and lamb skewers to mango salad and friend rice. It was pretty filling. But not filling enough I guess. Because we decided to go to Maxims just down the street for more dessert. Coffee and cake for everyone. Enough already!

Canoeing at Killarney - Day 3

Day three started off nicely. But, unlike the day before, it stayed nice. Brian and Emily #2 were up first. We heard them in the water swimming and Peter and I decided to join in. Since Emily #1 couldn't swim she stayed by the shore.

Like I mentioned before, the water was relatively warm. And, since there were only four campsites on Grey Lake, it was even more quiet and peaceful than Bell Lake. While in the water Peter and I even saw a loon swim unhurriedly by.

It was magical swimming/floating on our backs looking up at the pine trees and sky above. Just so relaxing. A brief while later I got the idea of wearing our life jackets in the water and floating around. This would allow Emily to join us (which she did). We bobbed up and down in the water for a good part of the morning. It was wonderful.

We packed and headed back to the parking lot shortly after 1:00 p.m. It didn't take us too long to get there. We did our last portage and were attacked by mosquitoes once again.

After returning their canoe to the outfitters, Emily #2 and Brian hit the road. We had to lash ours to the top of Peter's M3 before heading off.

We stopped at Burger Priest in Barrie for dinner. Before that we grabbed milkshakes at Kawartha Dairy to drink. Yummy, yummy.

The traffic was still pretty bad going south on the 400. Even at that time in the evening. I don't believe we got home until after 11:00 p.m. after dropping the canoe off at Peter's friend's place in Etobicoke.

The trips had its ups and downs. It was mostly the mosquitoes that annoyed us. So many bites. The canoeing was amazing. Just being on, or even in, the water was great. I'd surely do it again. Especially in a place like Killarney. So pleasant, so serene.

Canoeing at Killarney - Day 2

Our second day at Killarney started off well. The sun was shining and the skies clear. We took our time with breakfast and just hanging out before heading over to our next campsite at nearby Grey Lake. It was a short paddle to the 530-540 metre portage point from our first site.

At the beginning of the portage I thought I'd try carrying our canoe solo. It was Kevlar after all, so it's not as heavy as the ones from the olden days. Still, two-thirds the way through, I was dying. Dyyyying.

The paddle to our campsite on Grey Lake was pretty easy. It's no more than a kilometre and a half long. After passing on the first site we saw, we found a decent one around a kilometre from the end of the portage. We set up our tents and headed back out for a hike. We were going to Silver Peak.

It was a long day. Unfortunately we had to do the portage again since the beginning of the Silver Peak hike was at the far west end of Bell Lake. In total I believe we paddle around 10 kilometres (5 each way) and hiked about 8 kilometres (4 each way up and down the hill).

By the time we started the hike the skies had clouded over. When we reached the peak we could see rain in the distance. It caught up with us maybe an hour or so before we got back to the canoes. We pretty much paddled most of the way back to our Grey Lake campsite in the rain. Yuck.

The views from Silver Peak were decent. Besides the rain, the hike wasn't too bad either. Especially after doing Alberta last summer. Nothing here can compete with the steepness or the rocky terrain there. The third time doing the portage was pretty tiring. The mosquitoes along the way were relentless. As well, back at the campsite, they were ready to feast. It was miserable.

Brian and Emily #2 prepared Shepherd's Pie using mashed potato mix from Bulk Barn. We were pretty much famished from our daily activities that we happily wolfed it down. Afterwards Peter, Emily and I went for a quick paddle to catch the fleeting sunset before bedding down. This time we put the tent flies on turning them into sweaty saunas. So uncomfortable.

Canoeing at Killarney - Day 1

Peter, Emily, her friend, Emily, (yeah, I know...) and her husband, Brian, and I went up to Killarney Provincial Park to go camping and canoeing over the Civic Day long weekend.

I slept at Peter's place Friday night and he drove Emily and I. We met Emily #2 and Brian at the Barrie ONroute at around 9:30 Saturday morning and we continued together. Without traffic the drive is just over 4 hours. Being the long weekend, it was busier than normal though. We arrived at the park a bit past 2:30.

Peter had borrowed a canoe from his co-worker, while Emily #2 and Brian rented one from Killarney Kanoes (at the park). After doing the administrative work at the park office/store we headed out onto the lake.

Since it was a long weekend, the park was fully booked. We were unable to get one campsite for the two nights. Instead our first site would be on Bell Lake (where Killarney Kanoes is located). The second would be a 540 metre portage east on Grey Lake.

Each lake has a certain number of campsites. They're first come, first served. Though they only book enough reservations per lake to fill all the spots, no more. So you don't have to worry about not getting a site, just which one.

I think Bell Lake had at total eight campsites while Grey Lake had four. We paddled about 2 kilometres to find one we liked on Bell Lake. On Grey Lake we found a suitable one just over 1 kilometre from the end of the portage.

The Bell Lake campsite was really nice. At the tip of a short peninsula/island it had a nearly 180º view of the surroundings. There was a nice clearing amongst the tall pines where we set up our tents and where the fire pit was located.

After setting up camp, Emily #2 and Brian went in the water for a dip. At this time of the year the lake was pretty warm.

As for Peter, Emily and I... we took our canoe out for a short spin. Since I was the most experienced canoeist of the three, I took the rear seat and guided us to our site. But now that we weren't in any hurry to get anywhere, Emily took a turn at the back. She did pretty well overall. Peter was content to sit in the middle.

I have to say, the first day was beautiful. The sun was shining, the skies were blue. It wasn't overly hot and the lake was calm. Since there weren't many campsites on the lake it was peaceful and quiet too. Amazing time to be in or on the water.

We paddled for nearly an hour before coming back for dinner. Brian and Emily #2 made some sausages and veggies. There were also vegetarian hot dogs for Emily #2. They looked like regular ones, so I ate one. Eh... not so good.

After eating, Peter and I went back out onto the water to catch the sunset. There were some wispy clouds in the sky and the reds and oranges that bounced off them were stunning.

We came back to shore and sat around the campfire until the stars came out and then photographed them too. There were a number of great vantages points because, as I mentioned before, we were on the tip of a peninsula.

Bedtime was at 11:00. It was warm out, so we all slept without our tent flies.

Sod Rules

Peter and I met at Justin's place on Saturday morning to help him re-sod his front lawn. He had rented a machine from Home Depot that would cut up strips of his lawn and we would roll them up and dispose of them in a large bin that he also rented. After a breakfast of bacon and pancakes prepared by Justin we got started sometime around 11:30.

Since we didn't want to take a chance wrecking the machine Justin rented we decided he should work it the whole time. At first Peter and I took turns rolling the sod and bringing it to the dumpster ourselves. But then we decided to specialize our tasks. Peter would solely roll the old sod strips and I would carry them over to the dumpster and toss them. I think it was more efficient this way.

Still the work was hard. The weather wasn't bad. The temperature topped out at around 26C. Not as bad as the previous week when it was probably closer to 30C plus humidity. Still it would have been nicer if it were a little cooler. And not as sunny. We spent a good six hours in the sun. We were all pretty well toasted.

Gabe came a bit later. He was busy in the morning and early afternoon. He arrived at around 3:00. Just in time to help us clean up the last bits of the old lawn and start laying down the new sod - over 100 pieces (cut in lengths at 9-square-feet per piece).

Again we split our roles up. Gabe and I carried the pieces of sod from the pallets on the driveway over to where Justin and Peter lay them out across the yard. The middle part of the yard was easiest. It's around the edges and around objects such as trees where you have to do the most work. We had to cut certain pieces to fit snuggly around these items.

I believe we finished by around 6:00. Justin and Peter barbecued ribs that Justin had bought. Justin also made cornbread. And we enjoyed some cold beverages in the backyard afterwards. Our reward for a hard day's work.

Letchworth State Park pt. 3

The Prospector Restaurant, Attica, NY.

We didn't really spend too much time in the park on our last day. After waking we took our time with breakfast and lit our last campfire (to use up our remaining wood). Then we packed our gear and took down our tents and headed off.

Our first idea was to go to Mount Morris Dam just outside the park. But after getting gas and realizing it was kind of hot outside, we passed. We were still recovering from the 22 kilometre hike the day before and it was running late.

Next we thought we'd visit the nearby town of Perry 13 kilometres away. We had seen some Perry's Ice Cream advertisements on the walls of the convenience stores in the park and thought we'd try some.

The town was easy to find. It's pretty small though. We drove around looking for the ice cream factory and couldn't find it. We didn't even see any advertising in any of the town shop windows. We thought it was strange. After driving around for a little while we gave up and headed out to look for a place for lunch.

There was a steak restaurant somewhere that Peter had heard about and wanted to try. Though he couldn't remember the name (or exactly where it was located). It could have been in Buffalo or in Niagara Falls, New York. We wanted find a spot with Wi-Fi and do a search for it.

I thought we should drive an hour towards Niagara Falls/Buffalo to look for it, but the guys were too hungry. We searched for nearby restaurants on the GPS in Peter's car and headed off.

I can't remember which restaurant in which small town we went to, but it didn't look very good so we hopped back in the car and  hit up the GPS again to look for another place. This time it took us to Nino's Pizzeria in Attica.

When we arrive we found it too was a pretty rundown establishment. No luck again. We drove around Attica a bit and noticed a Burger King. Since Peter and Gabe wanted to eat soon we decided we'd go there if we couldn't find anything else. Though we really didn't want to because we wanted to try something new.

Across the street we saw this small restaurant called The Prospector. We thought we'd give it a try. It was run by a nice middle-aged lady and served things like burgers and fries etc. As well, I saw a sign for Perry's Ice Cream on the outside wall of the building.

Peter and I both ordered a burger with fries. Gabe had the meatloaf sandwich. They had Pepsis with their lunch. I thought I'd be a good boy and ordered a glass of milk.

We all topped it off with a Perry's soft serve cone. Gabe and I had the vanilla/chocolate twist, while Peter had vanilla. They were much better than the soft serve cones you get here (at McDonalds or from the ice cream truck). These ones were much creamier. Very good.

We also found out from the patrons there (most of whom were middle age to elderly) that the Perry ice cream plant isn't located in Perry, but in Akron, New York. They were a chatty bunch. I'm sure we were the first foreigners to poke our heads into their semi-out of the way restaurant in a long time.

Another neat thing about the restaurant is that they had these really cool tables from the 50's, 60's and 70's. I think the owner and other patrons were amused at my fascination with them. I took photos of quite a few of them.

The owner asked if we wanted to take any home with us because they were moving locations and she wasn't bringing them along. If I had the means I would have taken some for sure. They looked so cool.

Once again we hit the Rainbow Bridge on our way back over the border. The wait was a very respectable 1/2 hour.

We didn't do anything upon our arrival home. We just parted ways to meet again another day.

Letchworth State Park pt. 2

Middle Falls.

Our second day at Letchworth State Park started with boiled eggs and sausages for breakfast with coffee for the other two.

We then went to look for some more ice to keep our fruits and veggies and beer cold. It was around this time we discovered our remaining Vietnamese sandwiches were half soaked by the melted ice in the cooler. So, as well as the ice, we had to buy three half subs at the Lower Falls Restaurant for about $20! Expensive.

After we bought our supplies we started our one long hike of the trip - the 7 mile/11 kilometre (each way) Gorge Trail #1. It starts by the railway overpass at the south end of the park right by the Upper Falls.

The Gorge Trail follows the Genesee River north alongside the park road. Along the way you pass the Upper, Middle and Lower Falls. As well you go by Big Bend, the Tea Table/Wolf Creek, all the way to the end of the trail at St. Helena picnic area.

The park actually goes a lot further north than the end of the Gorge Trail. But, that was plenty far enough for us.

The hike out took us 6 hours along the path. Of course we stopped to eat and to take a lot of photos. But, we were pretty drained by the time we hit St. Helena.

Instead of taking the path we hit the road for the 7 mile/11 kilometre walk back. It was much smoother with less severe ups and downs. It only took us 2-1/2 hours on our return trip. We didn't stop for pictures and walked a lot faster than on the way out.

For dinner we tried the freeze-dried camping food that Peter bought. I can't remember the flavours now, but they were either pasta or rice based with some sort of meat like chicken or beef (most likely). I thought they were fine. But, they're rather expensive at between $7-$8.00 each.

Once again I tried some star shots after a shower and before bed. But the clouds moved in again to ruin things.

Letchworth State Park pt. 1

Tea Table/Wolf Creek.

Gabe, Peter and I went down to Letchworth State Park in Upstate New York to go camping over the Victoria Day long weekend. We were going to test out some of the stuff we bought for our June Banff trip. Emily was supposed to come too, but her workplace messed up her schedule and she had to back out last minute.

We met at Gabe's condo shortly after 8:30 on Saturday morning. I parked my car there and we took Peter's. He has a Thule roof-top cargo box that can carry a lot.

Our first stop was to pick up Vietnamese sandwiches at a place around Wilson and Jane or something. Well, we kind of got lost. It took us quite a bit longer than we planned to get the sandwiches and hit the road again. C'est la vie.

The drive towards Niagara Falls (where we were going to cross the border) wasn't too bad. There were some slow downs on the QEW past Hamilton, but it wasn't terrible.

After seeing some road information signs we decided to cross at the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls. We were hoping it would be the quickest way over. We ended up waiting about 15 minutes which was great for a holiday long weekend.

Though, we had to make our way back up to the Queenston/Lewiston Bridge because we were going to the store near there where Peter has his post office box to pick up some stuff people bought and had shipped there.

After that we went to the nearby Walmart for "supplies". We bought beer and chips and a whole BBQ chicken for dinner that evening. Just so we didn't eat only junk food, we bought some pre-cut veggies (carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower), fruits (bananas, oranges and pears) and a half dozen eggs too. We also bought a bag of ice for the cooler to keep the perishables fresh.

The park is about 1-1/2 hours from the border. After all our stops we didn't arrive until late afternoon. We had hoped to get in some hiking after checking in and setting up our tents, but it was a bit late for that.

Instead we drove the length of the park and stopped at different outlook points and took photos. That's all we really had time for.

Dinner was good. We ate the whole chicken along with some boiled veggies. We drank beer and ate chips by the campfire. We bought the wood at a stand just outside the park where you pay on the honour system. There's a box for the money depending on how many bundles you take (1 for $4; or 3 for $10).

I tried to take some star shots at night, but I couldn't find a wide open space. And the clouds started to move in too.

Overall it was a great day. The weather forecasters had predicted rain and we received nary a drop. As well, since it was still relatively early in the season... there were no bugs! Wonderful.

Labour Day Weekend @ Justin's Cottage Pt. 3

Sunday started off with a late breakfast at The Fort at Hotel Pontiac, 35 kilometres from Justin's cottage. If you had a boat you could take a more direct route 10 kilometres west straight up the Ottawa River. By car it's about 45 minutes over the bridge through Chapeau.

The restaurant/hotel is located right on the beach. While we were there we saw a number of small boats pull right up onto the beach and people come right in (just as if they drove up by car).

We had a variety of things to eat. Some of us had 2 eggs with either bacon or sausage plus home fries and toast. Others had the pancakes or French toast with bacon. All the choices were really good.

After our meal we headed 52 kilometres straight east on Highway 148 to Chutes Coulonge Park. It's part historical park and part adventure park.

The historical part tells the story of the logging business in Quebec in the early to mid 1800s. The adventure part is part climbing, part zip lining. It's $8 to get in. More if you want to do the adventurous stuff.

We walked around checking out the historical part. The scenery was nice with the waterfalls. We even saw a neat, brown snake. I have no idea what kind it was, but it was the largest snake I've ever seen in the wild. Usually the ones I see (if I see any) are really small.

After the park we bought popsicles and ate them before returning to the cottage and going to the big beach. There we gathered some wood and lit a bonfire and sat around it relaxing before going in the water again to play Frisbee.

Dinner was meat, meat and more meat. Justin cooked pork chops on the barbecue outside while Peter worked his magic on the lamb and beef short ribs from the night before. We cooked up some yams and corn on the cob to round out the meal.

In the evening we drank beer and played board games. This time until around 4:00. Good times.

Labour Day Weekend @ Justin's Cottage Pt. 2

After staying up past 2:30 we were up relatively early the next day. Except for Peter, most of us were up by 10:00 a.m.

Gabe and I woke a bit early because he heard some rain falling on our tent. Not wanting to take any chances we decided to set up the my sister's tarp that I brought.

We tied some rope to the corners and tied the corners to the surrounding trees. After that the rain pretty much let up. But, since we were up, we stayed up.

I went around the grounds and took a few pictures before breakfast. Peter made some eggs. As well I believe he made some French toast too. Justin brewed some tasty coffee and we ate on the front deck of the cottage.

Following breakfast we just went over to the big beach (behind the cottage). We didn't want to go too far because we were waiting for Emily and Janice to arrive. Instead of leaving Friday night they decided to come on Saturday morning.

At the beach we threw Gabe's Frisbee around while standing in the shallow water. It was a bit cold at first, but it didn't take us long to get used to.

After we finished I took a quick dip in the water. There was a lot of seaweed (or some other sort of underwater vegetation) in the area I was in nearby the dock with the Seadoos on it. So I swam in from there and came ashore.

Emily and Janice arrived shortly after. I believe we ate something for lunch, but for the life of me, can't remember what.

Following lunch we went on a hike. I don't know where we went, we just followed Justin's car. He took us to a trail that had to have the most mosquitoes per square kilometre anywhere. It was crazy.

Right after getting out of the car they started coming around. And once you entered the trees it was "run for your life." (which is pretty much what I did).

I only took around 3 or 4 shots along the whole length of the trail (about 3.5 kilometres each way). If you were foolhardy enough to stop you would have been eaten alive.

The trail ended by a river (I believe). I ran around and took a bunch of shots there before packing my camera bag back up and running (as much as I could) back to the car.

My bug jacket was essentially useless. Since I had it pulled tight around my arms they bit through the mesh. Most of the others suffered multiple mosquito bites too, even though they had sprayed themselves liberally with repellant. These Quebec mosquitos are tough mothers it seems.

Thankfully the bites didn't affect me too much. After the initial swelling subsided I avoided scratching and hardly even noticed them. I was so happy about that.

We cooked a lot of meat for dinner. Peter brought marinated lamb and Emily had Kalbi (beef short ribs). I cut them into smaller pieces and Peter cooked them on the stove. We also had some carrots and one parsnip to balance out all the meat. Since it was raining outside we had dinner in the living room.

After we cleaned up Emily brought out some of her board games. The first one was a new one called Ca$h 'n Guns (second edition). Players have to try to accumulate cash and prizes while avoiding being shot by the others. If you're still standing by the end of the game you total your loot. The person with the most money wins.

Next we pulled out the expanded version of Saboteur. It's quite a bit more complicated than the original. Besides the saboteurs there are teams of gold miners as well as a number of other characters. There are new path and actions cards too. It's pretty complicated, but we figured it out.

Both games were fun. We played until at least 3:00 a.m.

Labour Day Weekend @ Justin's Cottage Pt. 1

Justin invited us to his cottage for the Labour Day long weekend. It's located on L'Isle-aux-Allumettes, Quebec, on the Ottawa River opposite Pembroke, Ontario.

On a good day it's about a 5-1/2 hour drive from Toronto. Since we were leaving on the Friday of a long weekend, we were prepared for a longer journey.

Gabe and Justin were able to leave early to avoid the traffic. They left at around 1:30, both having taken the day off work. I could have gone with them, but Gabe wasn't too keen on having to spend over 5 hours cramped in the back seat of Justin's convertible. So I was relegated to Peter's M3 with Fiona. She had to work until around 4:30, so we didn't leave until about 5:30.

Since we figured the 401 would be crawling with cottage-goers leaving town all at the same time we opted to head east along Steeles Avenue. While there was less traffic we did encounter more traffic lights.

As well there were other distractions like grocery stores with milk bread. We stopped at the T&T on Steeles at Middlefield for some. As well, we picked up some Vietnamese sandwiches at a nearby shop to munch on.

We took Steeles Avenue/Taunton Road all the way across through Whitby and Oshawa. At some point we eventually turned north to Highway 7 which we took east to Highway 41 (which goes north all the way up to Pembroke).

Since we didn't actually want to drive through Pembroke we detoured onto Highway 13 (Mountain Road) a bit north of Eganville and Lake Dore. From there we headed east over to Highway 17; north to Highway 40; north to Highway 148 (eastbound) which took us over the bridge into Quebec.

From there it was a 20 minute drive along Chemin Pembroke/de Desjardinsville/Front to Justin's cottage. All in the dark. I believe we drove the second half the trip in total darkness (except for a couple of spots on the road ahead illuminated by Peter's car's headlights).

When we arrived Justin and Gabe already had the campfire going. It was in a small pit by the cottage (and near the water by the small beach). We couldn't actually see the water because it was dark. But, we heard it.

Gabe had already set up the tent that I was going to share with him. We unloaded everything from Peter's car and set up his tent and Emily's (that Fiona was going to share with her, though she had it to herself this evening).

Next we retired to the chairs around the campfire and enjoyed a few beverages. Fiona made me a rum and Coke (which I think was heavy on the rum) because I was a bit dizzy afterwards. Though it could have been because I hadn't eaten much during the day. Who knows?

I believe we had some snacks around the fire too. Then Peter and I went to try and take a few night shots over the Ottawa River with Pembroke in the background. As well, we had fun light painting with our flashlights which I captured with my camera.

The Past Three Weeks at Work

The past three weeks at work have been pretty crazy. Our boss, Sid, was away on vacation in China. He hired a new fellow, Peter, from our church to take over his everyday duties. Unfortunately he didn't get very much training beforehand.

There are a lot of things to do when you have a small business. You're in charge of everything from finances, to supplies, to making sure all the equipment is working properly.

One of the first problems Peter had to deal with was one of the machines that wraps the hot towels wasn't working well. Again. This machine has been acting up for a long time. Sid gave Peter a quick go through on how to fix it, but he couldn't seem to figure it out on his own.

Another problem we had was the late delivery of materials to make the wet towels. I believe we got the shipment before Sid left, but we were still playing catch up while he was away.

To make matters worse, the machine that makes the rolled wet towels stopped working. I guess something broke and it needed a new part. Peter called someone to make it and the machine sat idle for four days putting us even further behind.

Then there was the problem with the hot towels not being cleaned well enough. I'm not sure why that was. Whatever the case there was a mountainous pile of towels deemed unclean enough to use by Mrs. Li sitting in the middle of the floor.

Peter went to buy some replacements, but even they weren't enough. Near the end of Sid's vacation I was having to skip customers because I didn't have enough towels to deliver. If I could, I would go back the following day but, of course, that totally screwed up my schedule.

With all these extra distractions Peter was having a tough time keeping on top of things in the office. We were late with deliveries so people were constantly calling and complaining. He was getting really stressed out.

To top things off Peter was supposed to pay the company's GST at month end (end of November). But he couldn't get the numbers to come out correctly and there was no one to call for help. Sid was out of the country and Joseph (Sid's son), who had come in to lend a hand a few times, had gone away somewhere at the end of the month too. So they might have to pay a penalty for submitting it late.

Anyway, Sid is back now. I don't know if things are completely under control yet. But I think they're slowly returning to normal. Hopefully.