Day 55: Fall - beautiful or depressing?

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 55: Fall - beautiful or depressing?

It’s September, the month fall starts and with it the most depressing time of the year.

Some see beauty in the fall, I’m not one of them. Sure, the foliage in fall is beautiful but look beyond the colors and you’ll realize that the leaves are dying and soon after that rotting.

Everything is dying ... the trees, the shrubbery, and the flowers. For months the world will be devoid of color. No more green trees offering shade on a hot day. No more bright red geraniums, playfully pink petunias, or yellow and purple smiling pansie faces. No more anything.

Winter at least offers the beauty of snow and ice. 

While it might be cold, falling snow or gazing upon a white landscape can be a source of joy. But what joy is there to be found in the fall?

Even more depressing is the temperature. Warm days are a thing of the past. It’s only September 8th and I’m already sitting with a sweater on. 

Last year was very different. The air conditioning in our condo building was switched off in the second week of September and the residents descended on the management office un mass. They asked, pleaded and begged the building manager to turn the air-conditioning back on because it was stifling hot in their units.

Not this year. The air-conditioning unit hasn’t been on for days, instead of shorts I’m wearing jeans, instead of sandals I’ve reached for socks and slippers, and as mentioned earlier, I’m wearing a sweater.

Halley and Greyson aren’t bothered by the sudden chill in the air. As you can see, they continue to nap in the balcony swing. 

Yesterday I thought it a little too chilly for Halley to be outside, so I covered her with a blanket. She stayed and continued to snooze. That is, until Greyson came along and started trampling all over her.

Fall ... I guess we'll just have to put up with it. In another six months, it will be spring again.

_________________________

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Day 44: A new assignment

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 44: A new assignment

They say that all beginnings are difficult and I can attest to that. Take yesterday for instance …

I started a new temp assignment and was sent to 2266 Raspberry Street (not a real address). I looked up the address on Google to find out how to get there and felt confident that all would go well. It didn’t.

For starters, I missed my bus stop. Even though I knew where I was going, I didn’t know exactly where to get off the bus. When it reached Sheppard Avenue though, I knew I’d gone too far and had to backtrack.

After getting off at the right stop, I had to find Raspberry Street, which was easy enough and so was locating number 2266. 

The trouble started when I tried to get into the building. The doors had a security lock and one needed a passcode to get in. Hm, now what? There was no phone to call anyone and there was nobody around.

That’s when I spied two gardeners at work. I tried to persuade one of them to let me into the building, but I was met with ‘Sorry, no English’. Well, I didn’t speak Spanish, so now what? Eventually the gardener’s supervisor showed up, he did speak English and let me into the building.

From there on everything went smooth. I was shown to my work spot, explained what to do and even though it was all new to me I was confident that I could handle it. As a temp one has to be adaptable.

Around 10:00 a.m. I felt like a coffee, but … there was no coffee available. Neither was there tea, juice or even water. My goodness, talk of a problem! So I made my way to the nearest gas station where that boasted ‘Coffee on the go’. Perfect. The coffee wasn’t all that great, but it was better than nothing.

This is why I prefer working in downtown Toronto rather than in the suburbs. Downtown has everything: coffee shops, eateries, and a variety of stores. It has happened that I forgot my comb or lipstick. It may not seem like an emergency to you, but it is to me. If I can't comb my hair I look like Medusa and if I can't touch up my lipstick I look like death warmed up. It's also nice to be able to pick up a lunch, a snack, or anything else one might need.

Anyway, I battled my way through the day, doing this, that and the other, and made it to 4:00 p.m., home time. When I exited the building, I noticed it was pouring rain. A deluge you might say. Now what? I had to make it to the bus stop, but I couldn’t possibly leave the building under these conditions. I had to wait it out until the rain eased up a bit.

When I saw the bus coming, I knew, it’s now or never. Rain or no rain, I had to catch this bus because who knew when there would be another one. Ready, set, go … I sprinted across the tarmac to the bus stop and made it with seconds to spare.

I wasn’t the only one who got caught in the rain, people were dripping everywhere. One or two had brought an umbrella, which I should have done too, but who thinks of taking along an umbrella when the forecast is sunny with 20% chance of rain? Cold and wet I took a seat and shivered all the way home.

Today, things went a lot better. I got off the bus at the right stop, been given a fob I managed to get into the building, and to be on the safe side I brought a jacket and an umbrella. And what’d you think, it’s warm, it’s sunny, with not a cloud in sight.

Day 98: A day in the life of a TTC commuter

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 98: A day in the life of a TTC commuter

What a day, what a day, what a day I had yesterday.

Over the weekend we had two days of freezing rain. If you wonder what freezing rain feels like, let someone take a handful of uncooked rice and from a distance throw it in your face, hard.

Not only does freezing rain feel painful, I also find it painful to look it. I mean really, yesterday it was April 16, but nature looks and feels like it’s January 16. It’s cold, the sky is grey and instead of nature awakening in a variety of color, everything is white. Sorry for the poor quality of the pictures, they were taken from the safety and the warmth of a bedroom window.

Before going out yesterday morning, I wondered what to wear … snow boots or regular boots. “Wear regular boots,” Dieter advised, “if it’s a little slippery you can hold on to me.” A little slippery???

As soon as we left the building where we live, I knew I was in trouble. There was so much melting ice that we either had to trudge through the slush or step into ankle-deep puddles. And that wasn’t even the worst of it, oh no, the worst was yet to come. Once out of the garden, the street was no longer a street but an ice rink. We were no longer walking, but slipping and sliding and desperately trying to stay upright.

Moments later we faced another problem … going down the steps to the train station. I wasn’t sure whether to hold on to Dieter or to let go. After all, if he fell, he would take me with him and vice versa.

To make a long story short, we made it the station in one piece.

More bad luck awaited us though. The trains weren’t running due to a power failure and everyone had to take a shuttle bus to the nearest station where they did have power.

Don’t imagine this as simple. Along with hundreds and hundreds of people, we stood in the cold, in the freezing rain, waiting for a bus. When the third bus came along, we finally got on.

At Victoria Park station we all got off and made our way to the subway station, only to find out that now that station was out of power. So, everybody back outside and back onto the bus. Eventually, at Woodbine, we managed to get on the train.

We arrived at work cold and wet and very late, but we had made it. Lots of others didn’t, they either didn’t bother coming out or ended up in hospital. I can well imagine that quite a few people fell and broke something or their car skidded and hit something. Good business for the doctors, nurses and panel beaters.

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, have a look what we had to deal with.

Don't forget to donate to the Toronto Cat Rescue.

Any amount will make a difference.

www.canadahelps.org/en/pages/toronto-cat-rescue-bowl-a-thon-9/

Day 65: The Weather - According to my Son

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 65: The Weather - According to my Son

A few days ago, I had to go out. Even though it was December and presumably cold, before going out I asked my son “Is it cold out there?”

Heaven knows why I asked because I never get an accurate response. Dieter is one of those people who is completely unaffected by the cold. It must be pretty bad before he wears a coat and he never ever wears a hat or a scarf. So really, I don’t know why I bothered checking with him.

When Dieter says it’s nice, that means that I need a light sweater. When he says it’s a little chilly, a warmer sweater is needed. When he says it’s cold, I better bundle up in a coat, scarf, hat, and gloves. And when he says that it’s very cold, that means it’s freezing the balls off a brass monkey.

In summer, his temperature assessment is equally deceiving. When he says that it’s a little chilly, it’s actually quite nice. The kind of day that I can go out in a short-sleeved shirt. When he says it’s warm, that’s my cue to reach for something sleeveless. When he says it’s very warm, that means it’s hot. I can handle the heat up to 28 degrees C (86 degrees F) comfortably, but anything above that is too hot. So, when Dieter says it’s hot, that means outside the birds are falling out of the trees.

I’ll bet now you’re wondering how he describes wind and rain. So, I’ll tell you. When Dieter says, it’s okay, that means there’s a bit of a breeze. When he says there a bit of a breeze, it’s actually quite windy. And when he says it’s windy, there’s a storm going on. Now when he says that it’s very windy ... well, wherever you’re going you’re in danger of being airborne.

As for rain, he certainly can’t be trusted. It’s misty means it’s drizzling. It’s drizzling means it’s raining. It’s raining means it’s pouring. And when he says it’s raining hard there’s practically a hurricane going on.

My weather app on my phone is equally unreliable.

For instance. For today my phone said that it was 12 deg C (54 deg F). I’m sure it was 12/54 degrees somewhere, but it wasn’t in Toronto.

There have been days that the app says that 75% chance of rain is expected and there’s not a drop of water to be seen. Last winter the app predicted 6 cm of snow (a little more than 2 inches) and we got nothing than a light dusting.

Fortunately, even though my son fails to give me an accurate description of the weather and my phone app is frequently wrong, I can always rely on my cats.

When they groom themselves and they wipe a paw behind their ears ... it’s gonna rain. When the wiping involves a triple action, it’s gonna come down in buckets.

On the other hand, if they claw at the furniture or carpets, wind is expected. And believe me, it never fails.

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Day 1: Outside the Window

They say that writers should write every day to become better at their craft. I suppose they’re right, but it’s not always easy thinking of a topic to write about. Which is why I was pleased to find a site with an exercise “365 Creative Writing Prompts. Inspiration & Ideas for Poetry, Writing, Journaling & More.”

Initially, I planned on starting this exercise on January 1^st, but the new year is four months away and I was eager to get started. Next, I thought about starting on September 1^st since that’s only two days away. But then I figured … what the heck, there’s no time like the present, so I’m starting today.

Prompt 1: Outside the Window. What’s the weather outside your window doing right now?

Ah yes, the weather, always a safe and easy topic to talk or write about. Well, let’s see … it’s sunny here in Toronto, but it’s chilly, 21 degrees C (69.8 degrees F).

It’s been a lousy summer. So much so that this summer could go as the coolest and wettest in the history of Toronto summers. I don’t think we’ve hit 30 degrees (86 degrees) once, which ironically suits me just fine. I’m not a fan of the heat. I’m comfortable up to 25 degrees, but anything more than that is too much.

When it gets hot I prefer to stay indoors with the A/C on and a fan if need be. If I do find myself outside, I frequently run into trouble. For instance, we’ll set off on a Saturday morning to go bowling at a temperature that’s nice and warm, but by the time we leave the bowling alley it’s hot as hell. In that case, we have to take a cab home because there’s no way I can walk the long stretch home. For your information, we don’t have a car and as such have to walk wherever we want to go or make use of public transit. Torontonians will know I refer to the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission).

Not that the TTC is the ideal solution. While the trains are air-conditioned (if the air-conditioning works) the subway stations are not. Stations such as Kennedy, Yonge and St. George are much like saunas where one can hardly breathe. Taking the bus or streetcar is even worse. Passengers stand on street corners for who knows how long until the bus or streetcar shows up.

So why am I moaning about our lousy summer when in fact it’s been the perfect summer for me? No idea. Perhaps because our summer has been more like spring, and soon it will be fall. Ouch, what a horrible thought.

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Are cats meteorologists

All winter I’ve been bragging about the mild temperatures in Toronto. We experienced a mild November, a pleasant December, January was not nearly as cold as expected, and February – usually the coldest month – was surprisingly warm. But now, now that we’re halfway in March, now we’re getting it.

For days now we’ve suffered freezing temperatures, with the wind chill often recording -20 or even -25. My winter coat, which I haven’t worn all winter, now comes out of the closet, along with ear warmers, gloves, and a scarf. That is, if I go outside because a few times now I’ve forfeited setting foot out the door.

Like everyone else, I’m looking forward to spring. Just six more days and the new season arrives and with it hopefully warmer weather.

As for now, Toronto – the whole of Ontario actually – is under a snow alert. There’s talk of inches and inches of snow. So far I haven’t seen anything. When I look outside I see that the balcony, the parking lot below and the surrounding fields are having a light dusting of the white stuff, but that’s it. Not 12 inches like expected, barely 2 millimeters.

A few weeks ago, it was the same when rain is expected. The weather report warned of heavy rainfall and flooding, but all Toronto experienced was a light drizzle.

These meteorologists constantly get it wrong. I don’t know what their job involves, but they don’t seem to be very good at it.

Now my cats, on the other hand, they have an excellent handle on the weather situation. If they’re grooming themselves and they wash behind their ears, rain is coming. I don’t know about other cats, but I can trust my lot.

Cat owners might be familiar with this. The cat licks her front paw and then wipes the paw back to front over her ear. If it’s a single wipe, there’s nothing to worry about, but if the paw goes over the ear two, three or even four times … then there’s definitely a chance of rain.

Perhaps the institute for weather predictions should fire their meteorologists and hire a couple of cats.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

How do you feel about fall?

I select a turtleneck instead of a shirt, pull on a jacket and wrap a scarf around my neck.  Outside it’s chilly.  Not really cold, but there is a definite nip in the air.  The wind makes me turn up the collar of my jacket. 

When I look up I see a gray sky packed with low hanging, fast moving clouds.  I feel like turning around, going back inside and crawling into bed.  I feel like joining the bears and the squirrels that hibernate until March or even April. 

As I leave the subway station and climb the stairs to street level, I zipper my jacket and walk face down, looking at the pavement.   Instead of a flimsy skirt, I now wear slacks.  Sandals have been replaced with shoes.  Soon shoes will have to make way for warmer boots.

On my way to work, I see plenty of people who are dressed like me.  They wear sweaters, jackets and scarves.  They no longer sashay, but stride with a sense of purpose and urgency.  They no longer look around, checking if they are seen.  Now they, too, walk with bended heads.

Looking up now, I don’t like what I see.  Some trees are still green, but they are thinning.  Others are turning yellow.  Were they yellow yesterday, or has this happened overnight?  Leaves in various shades of gold and brown rush along the pavement and swirl around my feet.  When I step on them they make a crunchy sound and turn to bits.

The lilies in the flowerbeds are hanging their heads.  They look sad, like they know their days are numbered.  The geraniums are still there, but they don’t look as radiant anymore as they once did.  They have not seen the sun in a few days and they seem to suffer from a lack of warmth.

I suffer from lack of warmth too.  It is bad enough that the fall has arrived; but, that Torontonians have not had a proper summer makes it all the worse.  We had a few warm days, but those days felt more like spring than summer. 

Where are the days when it was already warm early in the morning and one could just feel that it was going to be scorching hot later on?  Where are the days that people were sitting in the shade, huffing and puffing, fanning themselves against the heat?  There has been no heat this summer.

Although I am not a big fan of the scorching heat, and I moan and grown at the sun like everybody else when it is really hot, the notion of heat when one is desperate with ice cold hands and feet is a nice prospect.  It’s something to get one through the moment, through the day and through the long winter.  But somehow we have been cheated.  Summer has passed us by. 

As I stand in the kitchen, waiting for the kettle to boil, I look out the window.  It has suddenly gone very dark, it is raining and drops of water are steadily trailing down the glass.  It is like Mother Nature is crying.  Down below the red and white lights of traffic contrast against the wet, black street.  The reflected colors remind me of a lit-up Christmas tree.

During lunchtime, I go outside to clear my head.  There is some blue in the sky now, but still far too many gray clouds.  A few intrepid souls are braving it and are going for a walk.  I have no such intentions.  I would rather stay inside and go in search of a hot bowl of soup.

The park, usually packed with lunchtime office workers and tourists, is now almost empty.  There is nobody strolling along the gravel paths; nobody squatting on the grass; nobody sitting under a tree on a shaded bench.  Now there are only pigeons and seagulls pecking at whatever they can find.   A few people are standing around in a watery sun, bundled up with coats and scarves.

Just before I go back inside I look up and see a flock of Canadian geese.  Are they heading south already?   I wish I could grow wings and join them.

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Snow ... Snow! ... Snow?

For those who haven’t quite decided what to do for a living, or those thinking about a career change, consider becoming a meteorologist.  Anyone qualifies and no experience necessary.

Take for instance yesterday’s weather forecast for Toronto.  The meteorologist predicted that the city was going to get snow.  Not just a few flurries, but the mother of snow storms.  It would snow between midnight and Friday 4:00 p.m. and as much as 6 inches (15 cm) was expected.

Before I continue, I should say that Toronto hasn’t had much of a winter so far.  It hasn’t been really cold and we’ve seen little or no snow.  So now, before it was all over with March around the corner, it was finally going to happen.

Kids rejoiced that they wouldn’t have to go to school.  Workers mentally rubbed their hands at the prospect of a day off.

Me, I was looking forward to a nice thick blanket of snow.  If I wanted a cold winter without snow, I could have stayed in South Africa.

When I woke up this morning I lay for a moment and wondered how much snow had actually fallen.  Would we be able to go to work?  Were the trains running?  If I went to work, would I find the office open or would there be a notice on the door “Closed on account of weather”?

Full of expectation I tiptoed to the window and opened the curtains, expecting to see the fields and trees weighed down with snow.  The cars in the parking lot waiting for the scraper to arrive so they could take their owners to work.   

What I saw was … a grey parking lot, slick with rain.  Where was the snow?  What had happened to the mother of all snow storms?  Where were the 6 inches?  We didn’t get 6 inches, we didn’t get 2 inches, we got nothing!  Nothing at all!!!

Later we heard that the snowstorm had passed us by.  Toronto was supposed to get a storm, but the strong wind had blown the snow elsewhere. 

Was this the first time the Toronto meteorologist got it wrong?  Let me put it this way … liar, liar, I’m surprised your pants isn’t constantly on fire.

Hello Phil

 

Yesterday was Groundhog Day.  The day Punxsutawney Phil tells us whether we get a late or early spring.  If we are to believe the little rodent, it will be a late one.  Phil proclaimed …

 

As I look at the crowd on Gobbler’s Knob

Many shadows I do see

So six more weeks of winter it must be

 

Six “more” weeks of winter?

We in Toronto haven’t really had a winter.

It’s been a little chilly, and we had a few flurries of snow, but nothing compared to other years.

I haven’t worn a sweater yet and my winter coat has been more in the closet than out.  In fact, this has been more like a long fall than a winter.

 

In the morning when I open the curtains I see either sunshine and blue skies, or soft rain from grey clouds.  I like them both equally.  While I like sunny days, every now and then a little rain must fall.  While I like rainy days, too much grey can be depressing.

 

Personally I rather like wet days.  The grayer the sky, the heaver the rain, the more creative I get.  In case you’re wondering if I’m a water sign … no, I’m a Gemini.  In the Chinese calendar I’m a rooster, a fire rooster at that.

 

Despite not being related to water I do some of my best work on rainy days and get some of my best ideas when I’m around water.  Showering and doing the dishes are inspiring, but what really gets me going is washing windows.  There’s a certain calm in washing glass, and while going from left to right and up and down, ideas for stories just come flooding in.

 

There are other people who think at their best when surrounded by water.  There was one writer who considered moving to Hawaii for precisely this reason.  His grandmother promptly replied “You want to be surrounded by water?  Take a bath.”