JULY 9 - Birds, By the River, and Vittles

Monday morning hit me hard. First of all, from now on I'm going to have a pail of water near my bedroom window, to throw at the next people who stand in the street  and yell at each other before 5 AM . I know my window is almost hidden by beautiful trees, but I think some water would reach the idiots. After a sleepless night, I wasn't in the mood to offer them comfort or counselling.

I became a bit more alert when the clock radio blasted at 5:30, and managed to keep awake until my cell phone beeped at 5:40, then I stumbled downstairs to turn on the coffee and continue my day.

• Breakfast - check. Unlike yesterday, when I burned 4 slices of toast for Tanner before I got 2 that were edible. Blame the stupid toaster.
• Clothes - check. Although I shouldn't have picked the skirt that gets tighter as the day progresses. 
• Keys, Phone, Bus Fare - check. 
• Take out the Garbage - check.
• Take the Garbage back in - (uncheck?) It's MONDAY,  not garbage day. Garbage day is Tuesday. 

Sigh. Oh well, a nice treat on the bus - my Eagle was back in his tree. And not only did I see him in the morning, I saw him and his eagle friend in the evening on my way home. I felt double blessed.

My day was spent basically clock-watching, as  I was so tired and droopy eyed. I am surprised the cash balanced at the end of the day, but as usual, it did quite nicely.

During my lunch, I walked up to the waterfront, to get a bit of a breeze and a shot of Vitamin D.

 My favourite Fish 'n Chip place, Pajo's at the Wharf. The take-out is on a floating jetty, and you can sit there on the water and have your picnic. It's nice when there's a bit of a wave motion, unless of course you are prone to sea-sickness. If you are, let me know, and I'll come with you and eat your fish so it doesn't get wasted.

It's always a treat to see a swan. I have seen two at times - however I haven't been up this way in ages, so I don't know how many there would be on a good day.

This is a new sculpture, I think it's amazing, not like the stupid art installations that are supposed to decorate other parts of the city. This one is perfect for Steveston.

Remember these from the Olympic days?

UGLY

 NOT QUITE AS UGLY

 The floating pier where fisher people sell their daily catches right from their boats.

 A restaurant built over the water.

And this explains why BC cod doesn't taste like North Atlantic Cod. I do remember jigging up cod 'back home' and they certainly didn't look like this, either in colour or expression. I sure hope Howard is enjoying a good meal of fresh cod while he's 'back home.' I had noodles for dinner.

You may notice me referring to Newfoundland as 'back home.' Because it is. Steve was a bit confused when we were discussing his father's cell phone coverage when he went  - you got it, 'back home.'

Me: I don't think Dad will be able to call us when he's 'back home.'
Steve: What do you mean?
Me: Well, he doesn't have a long-distance plan.
Steve: And he needs a long-distance plan to call home?
Me: No, silly. Of course not. But he would need one to call back home.
Steve: So if he's at work, he can't call home.
Me: What? Sure he can. But when he's back home, he won't be able to call home.

Well, you get the drift. I think Steve was ready to bring me to a nursing home. So I had to explain to my citified boy the difference between home (the nice house in Surrey) and back home (the far away place in our hearts.) He gets it now.

Now, even though I know for sure positively maybe that Howard is back home eating yummy stuff like Fresh Fish (cod, that is), Partridgeberry Tarts, Moose (maybe,) and Bakeapple Something (quite possibly), I still can enjoy my food here. Hardly.

Here is my amazing lunch. I would never recommend a Subway sandwich, but this one is tops. It's the newest member of their family, a Barbecue Pulled Pork Sandwich. This one is on Parmesan Oregano (I almost asked for Parmesan Origami, but I didn't) with lettuce, tomato and onion, salt and pepper, and BBQ sauce. So yummy. And a Yogurt/Fruit Parfait for dessert. With a Cranberry Juice.

 Now, dinner. After I got home, I put on a pot of Pea Soup, and then made some stir-fried veggies and Chow Mein noodles with Soy Sauce. Double yummy. The plate is now empty, and I would take the rest of it to work tomorrow for lunch if the microwave there hadn't blown up. Alas.

So, because a woman's work is never done, I must go water my plants, do my dishes, get my coffee ready for the morrow ... and yes, take out the bloody garbage.