Urban Adventures

This morning, for the first time in almost a month, I woke up before my alarm, feeling rested and ready to start my day.  Three cheers!

Getting to work and home again has been an adventure the past couple of days.  Yesterday, a sudden warm spell turned packed snow and rough ice into fields of smooth ice slicked over with water.  During my walk to work, there were several patches where I had to shuffle one inch at a time over precarious footing, and even at that I almost went down a couple of times.  I had to do the Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man dance to stay vertical.

This morning the ground was less treacherous.  All the ice on the sidewalks had melted - into giant, lake-like puddles.  At one point I danced my way through a puddle that was eight feet long and, at the middle, four inches deep.  Fortunately, I had my rubber-bottomed boots on, so my feet stayed dry.  Unfortunately, I brought my stuff to work in a canvas granny buggy instead of a handbag, because I had plans to go downtown after work and bring back some substantial shopping.  The wheels of the granny buggy did not quite clear the waves in this mega-puddle, and the bottom of the canvas got soaked.  Fortunately, none of the contents of the buggy sustained any water damage.

My adventure downtown was more exciting than I would have liked.  First I went to see my naturopath.  Then I got back on the subway train to go slipper shopping.  I have been inside in my jammies and slippers so much this winter that I've worn out two of my three pairs of slippers.*

*Yes, I do need three pairs.  They all have a purpose.  Slip-ons to keep by the bed at night, so I don't freeze my footsies when I get up; leather moccasins for lounging around in style; and big, puffy booties for when I'm seriously chilly.

When I got off the train at the slipper shop station, the platforms were packed.  This station is a major downtown hub where two track lines cross.  An announcement had come on the P.A. system a few minutes ago stating that one section of track, covering five very popular stations, was closed due to some poor soul sustaining "a personal injury at track level" at the next station to the north.  The station was already crammed to capacity with anxious crowds.  I could barely weasel my way through the crush to get out of there.

I went to The Bay where I scored a pair of $ 28 slippers for $ 9 on super-end-of-season-markdown.  Sweet!  Then I went back downstairs to the station, but I didn't get anywhere near the entrance.  It was still chockablock with crowds.

I wheeled my granny buggy through the underground shopping tunnels on foot to the next subway station.  My plan was to take the other arm of the line north, and then go across by bus.  I got on a train and went to another station where I could switch to a northbound train.  As soon as I arrived and dragged my buggy up two flights of stairs, another announcement declared that the delay was cleared.  Alright then.   I figured I'd just wait a few minutes for the crowds to clear out and then head back in the direction I'd come from.  I went back down the stairs, sat down and read my book for ten minutes, at which point another announcement stated that the delay wasn't clear after all and the track was still closed.  For the love of Pete...

I ended up taking the long, roundabout route home, including a ride on a packed bus in go-nowhere traffic that took around ten years, but I finally made it to my station.  Then my granny buggy and I set out for the 15-minute walk home, which would have been uneventful, but for an absolutely ridiculous wind that had kicked up since I was last outside.

This wind blew in my face so aggressively that, when it was gusting, it stopped me in my tracks.  Walking: it consists of picking up one foot and then falling forward onto it.  The wind was so strong that it stopped me from falling forward.  I ended up kind of marching in place half the time.  Not only that, but my canvas granny buggy became a nice big sail, windsurfing me in the wrong direction.  At one point I started laughing like a maniac because everything in the universe seemed to be conspiring against my goal of getting home.

But I did get home.  And my new slippers are super comfy.