JB's Warehouse & Curio Emporium

Another year, another PPP-organized campening (not camping - that would imply we're hard-core campers) trip down to Guelph Lake. It was the fifth one for the girls, and my second. You can look back on my maiden voyage here. The trip began by loading Dee and Tipper's stuff into the car. Tipper's a dog, the first time I'd ever carted one in the car, and she was well-behaved on the trip down to Guelph, with free reign over the backseat. We arrived at the campsite at sunset, leaving us to set up the tent in the dark (seeing how compact they are these days, I should pick one up next time CT has an employee sale). I took a notebook with me and scribbled a few words: 2:50 PM, Saturday, August 21st Rest time here at campsite 608. Tipper's just emerged from a quick dip in the water, in the lagoon next to the site. Dee's gradually turning red, Kiersten's taking a nap, Jeff's reading a book and Ken's flipping through today's Star. We're waiti...

After missing a show a few months back, I finally got to see some fellow Arts House alumni in their latest venture, a modern-day take on the classic carnival sideshow. Ringmaster The Great Orbax started the show with a demonstration of how to hammer various lengths of nail up your nose without scraping brain cells, tossing aside cheesy jokes along the way. Down front was a crowd of designated hecklers mocking him at every turn. Also introduced was the old carny staple, the Wild Man of Borneo...er...Barrie in this case (though as far as some city dwellers are concerned, Barrie may as well be Borneo). Only one problem faced Orbax and the Wild Man - the daredevil act of prying open a plastic grocery store BBQ chicken container. It would have been easier to bite the head off a live bird. Pretty Polly wore a china doll mask as she wielded, then lay upon, large knives, withput apparent injury. Psychibilly music from the Matadors followed, providing exercise for my toes. I managed to ge...

Last radio show of the summer run, ending on an up note. Only one tech snafu (open a CD player in the middle of a tune), a few requests, and no dopeyness on the drive back. Once again, Friday the 13th proves a good day. Mean Mean Man - Wanda Jackson Opening rave-up tune. Walk On By - Isaac Hayes Cool It - Wayne McGhie & The Sounds of Joy Can You Get To That - Funkadelic Still needed to get myself organized, so I threw on the longest track I had with me. Also noticed I was in manic DJ mode, talking louder, deeper and more "frantic" than usual...and having a ball. Coolest Little Monster - John Zacherle Night Of Fear - The Move Drivin' Nails In My Coffin - Ernest Tubb Yummy Yummy Yummy - Julie London The "Friday the 13th" related set. Attempted Count Floyd imitation after the Julie London track. True, it doesn't have any fear-related elements in the title (the stretch I used to include the Tubb track)...it's scary in a different manner. ...

Went out for lunch to the new branch of Siddhartha at Yonge & Eglinton, a major improvement over the previous tenant (Bombay Host, which had the blandest Indian spread I've ever tasted). Seated nearby were a couple of yuppie-ish mothers and their bratty kids. You know, the type who smile and think it's cute when their little darlings run amok. They screamed, ran around other tables, etc. At one point, they told a couple of guys who wanted the window seat next to them that the kids (and their strollers, which the kids appeared too large for) needed space. For once I saw a restaurant take action. The mothers had decided to share their buffets with the kids, getting them small plates of rice, which the brats proceeded to toss on the seats and floor. Something happened which caused them to call a waiter over to clean up the mess. Not sure what happened next, other than the manager came out and the mothers weren't happy. "How can you make us pay? They're j...

Old White Rose gas station sign at a former fruit stand (Murray's Orchards), east of Harrow, Ontario, Aug 5/04