the Life, Death and Fartload

My gal made up some pea soup with the hickory smoked hambone and ham bits (it is fine to dine on swine) after the Eostre weekend,  It was classic and very good pea soup. (Hemingway). It was ham and spuds, peas n carrots and onions. And 4 bay leaves. Then she added a cup of brown lentils in the slowcooker, cuz it was there. It was also good, but farty extra protein.
The gal's mum died last week. She was a Scot, born there. Close to where some of my grandparents came from, we may have fought some of the same battles or built some ships or chased some sheep together. We mourned her with a mickey of Glenfiddich , a singin of Loch Lomond, and the gal wrote letters to her mum we burned in the firepit.
My favorite cousin , not Scottish but his wife is, lost one of his best childhood buds. We are all gettin older, its not like being 20 and someone dies, we are over 50 and time marches on, but its still a load to bear. And it reminds us we arent going to be fucking and farting forever. Let's try to stay alive, not just for our own enjoyment of another sunrise, but to spare our mates the pain of it. My cuz is a very lifely man, still heli-skis Rogers Pass at 57, big-hearted, big-balls guy who took his missus for a Harley tour of Manitoba-BC-Yellowstone-Sturgis this year. Stay alive, there's lots to look forward to. Love you guys.

I am happy to be mentoring a cool chick at work, she is mostly Barbados-black, but her skin is goldeny and I think she might have some native and white, Indian from India in her mix. I crack her up, she laughs at all my little muttered grumbles. That makes my work day better. I have adopted her as my work-niece. Smart and clever, rides her bike to work, and trained in martial arts so she doesnt have much fear of silly men. She eats a lot of chickpeas, fish and rice. She likes farting (so she says) but I still go at least down the room or to the can to let mine loose. Dont want to disable her, cuz mine are old-guy farts. 
Life is pretty good, I try to focus on that, especially as people die. I appreciate having a 50+ gal (being almost 53) as we can reminisce about our times, and we have good cuddles. Young women are beautiful, and I like to be a grouchy (but kind) old bugger with them, not a dad, more a salty old journeyman to learn from.
I have more to learn.

the Easter weekend thing. not the island..

Late March to early April can be a bit emotionally charged for me. My dad's birthday March 15, his departure was on St Patty's day, 1998. My ma was born April 1, and she departed not long after that day, 8 yrs ago. I am used to bein an orphing, but I feel their presence in me around those weeks. 
Easter seems to coincide with the end of this period. In Chinese culture, they have Tombsweeper Day, to honor the ancestors, pretty close to this time as well.  Its death and rebirth time, spring is here in the northern hemisphere (nod to my Kiwi n Aussie mates).

This year, I had company for this time. My good woman has been living with me n the fine dog since June 1 last year. Its also death and rebirth time for her, her ol ma hasnt got many weeks or months left.  The rebirth is the spring; even at 54 N. lat. we have a brave tiger lily with about 5 inches of leaves pokin up, mere inches from a melting snowbank.
Good Friday dinner: I got a big ol ham on sale, nice hickory smoked shank, and cooked it up slow, put some slashes in the skin to make cracklin. Two pots of mixed veg, very colorful, especially the organic green beans with chopped bits of red pepper n oignon. Also broc n carrots, and little potaters boiled.
The gal got some Peek Freans English style biccies for dessert.
Had my old friend and sis-in-law over, she brought her coworker, who is an interesting hobbity little dude. They market reused building materials, nice old doors and woodwork, a worthy enterprise.  Dinner got a little cooled while we were swilling some Big Rock (TM) Grasshopper Wheat Ale (commercial plug), but we warmed it up and chowed down, then I went into protein coma in the armchair while they chatted, another holiday tradition of mine.
I had done the cooking and even vacuumed prior, so my good woman did a sterling effort on cleaning the kitchen after.  I had to work a half-day today (Saturday) to get my stat pay for Friday, so now I am chillin with some Jameson's and a tall bottle of Anarchist Amber Ale (cannery brewing co., Penticton, BC) and ready for a wee pissup and a sleep-in tomorrow.

Here's to the ancestors, to JC the rebel, to the reborn lilies and the dogs eatin the dinner scraps. Shalom!

Good Karma Day

Rare of me to post two things consecutive days, but its been a good day today.

Went up to 'Whyte n  Nine' (82 ave. and 109 St.) for a groceries n beer run about 11 a.m.  Got some good deals on stir -fry cut beef, some peppers, sprouts and real Chinese noodles to have with.  Was greeted by a nice lady (she would laugh at that) I used to work with at StatsCan, Lorette, while I was ringing up my purchases on the talking computer tills. Normally I hate them, but I decided to pull a fast one today, and rang out my green and red peppers both as green peppers.  Ssh, dont tell anyone. Anyway, hadnt seen Lorette since I quit the warm embrace of the Gov in '08. She is super cool, Metis grew up in Alberta, but her native half is Red River Cree (see prev. post) and she makes her main money working with elderly (some with Alzheimer's) folks, taking them shopping, helping them function in the world, finding them housecleaners for cheap, good karma stuff. She was with one of her clients today, a 105-yr-old lady who wanted to buy some grapes at Safeway, and insisted on choosing them herself.
Anyway, Lorette still works at StatsCan, for fill-in money, to help keep her ma alive in a home, and clued me on the new location of their office, which is right by an LRT station downtown, and they are hiring.
My gal Barb is working for stupidly low money in retail right now (Carlton Cards n gifts: fucking incompetent  'make the poor pay' employer, tell em to raise their fucking wages if you shop there) and I noticed Stats is hiring online, so if she does get on there, she already has a work-buddy in Lorette.
Then across to the Liquor Depot, saw a cool beer there, Bad Hare is the brand, they have a Chocolate Stout, which I didnt buy today but will in future. The sad thing about the beer run was the teller. A very pretty , but too thin girl who was obviously twitching for her meth hit.
Hope she gets her shit together someday. Liquor Depot is open earlier than BrownGuys, which  closer to 112 St.  and my usual vendor.
Feels like a good day overall, and I think the stars are pointing to my gal (with an anthro-sociology degree and super communication skills) getting a better job with the Gov, actually doing sociological research.
Fuckin 'A'. Axel.




    

hometown pluses and minuses

My gal is also from Winterpeg, close to the same places I ran wild as a youngun. This makes for meaningful convo about the old hoods, lots of which have suffered so much urban /drug/gang decay over the past 30 years they really arent there anymore.
North End Winnipeg used to be really cool in an ethnic way.  I lived in the heart of it when I had a loud jam band, nobody complained about the noise.  Magnus and Prince baby. Native folks, Metis, Slavs who had been there for 80 yrs, but also new immigrant folks just gettin their feet under them, our landlord was Chilean.  In many ways, it was Springsteen-ian, but more so. 
The Polish Legion, Russian Jews making great pickles and smoked meat, guys in wifebeater shirts workin on cars, drinkin (smokin weed) in the back yards. Loud bands, a hundred different ethnics hanging out, interacting. I used to go 'down Selkirk Avenoo' Saturday morning, you hear more Ukrainian , Polish, Yiddish  and Cree than English. Could buy a teapot, some horse-tack, a crock of pickles and some shoelaces in the same store.
Minuses? I forget. Oh yeah, its all gone now. Thats the big minus.  The crack and meth trade have fucked it all up.  The old babas with the backyard gardens, the old marketplace is all gone.
You can find lots of grey skinned, empty soul mofos to sell you shit and guns, but  you wouldnt want to live there.

Glad to have known it when it was there.

Canadians in the cold, smokers, musings

She's a lot like winter out there, boys. Minus 29 C., windchill MINUS FORTY. I dont have to discern whether that is Farenheit or Celsius,  -40 is where they meet, at a point labelled 'Fuckin Cold'.
I have a great Arctic rated parka, so am fully prepared. I just got back from a trip up to the Ave. for groceries n beer, 6 blocks each way. Noticed several of my countrywimmins along the way, dressed for the weather, showing pink cheeks (on their faces) and bright eyes from the cold, and a few even smiled at me in a neighborly 'caught you lookin' kind of way.  Gotta hand it to Canadians in a cold snap like this, they just put on more layers and carry on.  And gals who can still look good in parka and mukluks.
My quit smoking date is the 15th of the month, passed 3 months tabac free this last weekend. I was behind a guy at the checkout who bought a 20 pack, reg. length for 12.75 and I scoffed inwardly. He couldnt have been more than 32, but he had a greyish tinge to his skin and extra wrinkles from his habit. No shit, smoking makes your skin look decades older. I 'm not vain about my looks, but I dont want to look 62 at 52, prefer to look like a grey-haired, not grey-skinned,  45.  My only vices are beer and low stakes poker, together costing less than it would to smoke a pack a day at current prices.
Back to work from winter layoff tomorrow. These days of poker and beer on weekdays (I did have a part-time job to supplement the pogey, EI) are numbered, sigh. So I plan to enjoy kickin some Russkis' asses on the poker tables today, and tip back a few afternoon beers, while sniffing the evolving tasty aroma of my gal making a giant pot of soup downstairs. I dont have any beef with Russians, its just that pokerstars groups Canadians, Russkis, Kiwis, Ozzies, Brazilians, etc. together on tables, and there seem to be lots of Ivans playing this time of day.  Da svedanya, boychiks!

Have a good one, folks, stay warm.

not New Year yet, but feelin grateful anyway

The sun is fractionally higher in the sky, there was an actual warm patch of sunlight the dog found to catch some rays in the backyard this morning.  Had a good Xmas with my gal, quiet but comfy. Good eats, perfect turkey, ate too much. Happy to exchange some seasonal type emails with good buds I've had for almost all my life. I like my dog, he is awesome.  My son is going through a rough period, but 18 isnt an easy age.  Life is good, feels quite satisfactory at the moment.
2012, bring it on, you Mayan bitches..

commerce and good vibes in the big shitty, the nice end

Just got back from a trip up to Beer Store Corner, as I call it, Whyte n 112.  They had a sweet deal on turkeys at the Sobeys, but there was a sign which I didnt see , a caveat that you had to buy 35 bucks worth of groceries to get the turkeys at 97 cents/lb. 
(we are supposed to be centigrade, or by the Kg, but we function in both, up here in the Great White North).
Got into a little wrangle with the Asian gal at the till, she of the culture that loves discounts and haggling, she had to call a manager.  All I bought was some frozen french fries, a 2 litre chocolate soy milk for my gal, and a 9 lb. turkey.  Less than 35 bones.  The large and previously bitch-face manager came up, had to call head office, ended up giving it to me at advertised price. Score! Had nice convo with clerk-san in the meantime.
Then around the corner to BrownGuysLiquorInc.  The guy who works Sunday is a biz major, I think, the other guys are mostly IT.  I bought my usual Sunday 12 of Brewhouse and tall Beck's. Got into a convo with buddy, he offered me a free tall can of Original 16, made by Great Western Grain, also.
 I shared a tale with him:  this brewery was created by workers who used to work for one of the big 3 Canadian breweries in Saskatoon, which wanted to close the plant. They pooled their pension funds, kicked in some dough and bought the plant. Now runs as Great Western Grain, makes Brewhouse, a few other brews, all not bad, drinkable and cheap, and apparently they are trying to tap the higher-end market with Original 16. I will tell you how it is after its chilled.

I tried to tap buddy for a free beer glass too, but he held firm. He is a good marketer, but not a sucka. Peace.