In Canada (Pt. 1)

Last I updated from Canada, I was in Niagara Falls at my mother's place. In total, I was there about three and a half days, and I spent a lot of the time shopping! I cancelled Saturday night plans because I was so tired, but stayed in and watched "Old School." I'd meant to rent "Anchorman," but got confused!

First, we stopped by Blockbuster Video to pick up a movie. I was surprised, but they're going to have to change their name as there is nary a video to be found in the store. It's all about the DVDs! The handsome blue eyed clerk at "Video 2000," our next stop in search of VHS, informed us they're not even making videos anymore. It's funny my mom bought a new VCR about 4 months ago when her older one stopped working. It made sense to her, after speaking to Mister Blue Eyes, why the service centre guy laughed at her when she called to inquire about getting her broken VCR fixed!

Sunday, though, I met up with friends, including the handsome and wise Ben I hadn't seen for about 10 years. It was good!

I now know it takes about 2 and a half days worth of motherly nagging for me to freak out and scream, "Stop talking to me like that!" and then just shut down and not speak for an hour or so. This was while making a delicious BBQ dinner of steak, potatoes with sage and onion, massive portobello mushrooms, and cucumber salad. Delicious! I didn't take a picture of the two GIANT hunks of steak I bought at the supermarket for $10.12. They needed marinating (in a mesquite sauce) as they weren't the most tender cut you could get, but they were outstanding, and would have made a wonderful sandwich the day after on a crusty roll with lettuce and sprouts and a dollop of tabasco mayonnaise. I didn't get a chance to try that out, though, as I was on a bus bound for Toronto early the next morning.

I met up with my friend Joanie, whom I've known forever. We first met when I was about 4 and she was 6. We went to the same Elementary and High Schools together, and she knows me, outside of my family, better than anyone I'm sure. Likewise.

Let me say, when I arrived in Canada on the 28th of July the weather was HOT and MUGGY. It steadily increased over the next few days, with wicked thunderstorms in the evening that didn't do too much in the way of cooling things down. August 1st, the day I went to Toronto to meet Joanie was surreal, with a high of 39 degrees in the city. With the humidex, it felt like 49! No bother, though, we were headed up to my family's cottage where a hot humid day is quickly remedied by a jump in the lake. Still, in "Heaven" (Muskoka) it was stupid muggy, and that 1st night's sleep was fitful and uncomfortable.

It was great to see my friend. She has two adorable extraordinarily well-mannered little children I'd never met before. The two and a half year old cherub of a boy calls Joanie "Kumi-mummy," because he hears his sister address her as "Excuse me, Mommy," most of the time. Her four and a half year old girl is like a mini version of herself. She has a beautiful house in a lovely neighbourhood. Good marriage. 30 foot boat and yacht club membership. Wheeeee! Good for her. Honestly.

Thing is, I thought that the concentration of "I'm a mom" talk in e-mails and phone calls was just because time was short and, well, she's a mom. But it wasn't. She reminded me of her role as mother, caregiver, and housewife over and over and over. I quashed the temptation to point out I realized she was a mother because her children were standing in front of me, but the frequency with which her speaking contained phrases like "I'm a full time mom," "With two kids on the go," and "Being a mother,..." got kind of irritating. It was kind of like a television commercial. I'll give it to her, though, her role is one she's fully embraced and it defines her every being now. She had a strong character before, but now she's "Super Mom," and that's just about it. Once she goes back to work in the Fall she will be "Working Super Mom." Yep!

I'm sure she didn't mean to, but she gave me pause about my wanting children. Just listening to her talking about motherhood exhausted me, nevermind the constant attention the kids required from "Kumi-Mummy." Afterall, I might be too selfish to share my time. Hmph.

So there we were at the cottage. It was hot. It was me and my friend and her two kids and my uncle Dave. It was good, and this is to be continued,...