as planned. Well sort of. We left out of here about 4pm and got down to Clairview station and had an exceptionally long wait for the train. This was my firs sign of trouble but I read from NTR and eventually about 25 minutes later our train rolled in. I wore my gene jacket thinking I made a good choice because it wasn’t that cold out there. We were supposed to be there for 5pm and we went down to Rexal place station. Then we had a wait for a bus to Kingsway and I knew we were about to get into the thick of trouble. A severe change in the weather pattern here can disrupt everything. Our destination was to get the #12 at Kingsway. Because of some work the City was doing we had to take a slight detour and that detour cost us because as soon as we pulled in the #12 pulled out. It was waiting for the next one the temperature dropped. It was only -7C but a -16C wind chill. Welcome back winter. So after a long wait at Kingsway we finally got underway and got to Kingsway road and Airport Road. AKA: Ramada Inn at 6pm. I ordered a bacon cheese burger and fries. Very good but I should had ordered the buffet. It wasn’t very busy when we got there but began to get busy during our meal. We left out of there in a hurry at 7pm because Anne said the bus would be coming back within minutes. We barely got across the street and after a five minute wait for the #12 to Kingsway and a brief wait for the #8 back to Rexal for the train I had to go back to Clairview Anne had to go downtown. I should have gone with her as she got off at the bank downtown an I could have continued to at least Corona got myself a coffee and donut desert and back down to Corona for the trip back. I was waiting at Rexal picking up the pay phone to see the time on the display because Anne had my cell phone. The time read 7:45pm and it was getting colder. If I had dressed for this weather, fine no problem but a gene jacket just doesn’t cut it.

Finally I got the train and to Clairview. I waited inside the stairs area to see a bus coming and about half an hour later a Northgate bus arrived. Ten minutes on the bus later and reading NTR here and there it left. I got in to have Anne call me wondering where I was. I barely got inside he apartment to take everything off to get comfortable. I was pretty cold. The Oiler’s were in Phoenix late in the 1st leading 1-0. I got the whole 2nd and 3rd periods to see the Oiler’s win 5-2. What a game. Tonight at 6 is a back-to-back evening 6pm game. I’m going to sleep late have brunch, work on H and watch the game at 6pm. Anyway Anne came in and after getting warmed up ended up taking a trip to Walmart. Our Walmart is the only one here in Edmonton opened 24 hours.

With the cold weather and wait times we got on each others case here and there. But it came with the strain of the day. I wish we could have stayed longer. We‘re going to go back maybe late June on a Sunday for a real brunch. I Haven’t been at the Ramada (used to be called Edmonton Inn.) Inn since my old Amway days in the late 1990’s. I have never yet to be in there other then to get a coffee to take out, that sort of thing because the restaurant would be closed at 10pm. The meeting would have been just letting out about 9:30pm and we’d stay for night owls over there at BP’s until about 11pm. I enjoyed those days and it was fun being out with the gang at least once/week. Being on welfare wasn’t fun as I had very little money for night owls other then coffees. If I was working with Xl and doping Amway, things might have been different. The day I got notification that Lost Worlds magazine was going to accept my story “Earth tones” for publication was the day I got fired from ACT. I should have gone over to Xl right around the corner. Rob would have hired me on the spot. That’s at the time Xl began a morning shift in 1994. Hard to believe that was almost 15 years ago.

Anyway, fellow Blogers and readers, that’s all for now.

e. Jim