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Published: April 30th 2007
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OHIP (oh hip)
On Tuesday evening, I went to visit my aunty Mavis (who lives over here) on the GO train that has 2 levels and I went to sit on the top one purely for the novelty factor, occasional views of the lake but mostly Toronto suburbia that is a selection of muted coloured houses and no actual back gardens, just land around ‘you property’ all houses are built in different styles, no housing estates here. But lots of tower blocks, disguised as ‘condo living’. She (Mavis) was coming into ‘the city’ to take her new 6 month old puppy ‘intro’ to puppy class. (Training for guide dogs) I joined the class as we ‘all 19 puppies and various owners and friends of, walked down the main street of a small town called Oakville. The dog training school is on ‘Rebecca Street’. (see pic!) All the dogs had to do their ‘fire escape up and down test’ walking over a grate (grill) in the street and generally walk in a controlled manor with the leader. A mixture of labs and poodles from the ‘j’ and ‘I’ litters (hence ‘intro’) they all passed this stage and proud owners walked
away with their 6 weeks supply of food. For the dogs not for them). Check out (have a look at) www.dogguides.com (or guide dogs!)
Also managed to find the OHIP (oh hip) office which is like our NHS but different! I have to sign papers and supply evidence that I am not going to stay in their hospitals or visit a doctor without paying, in some way. The campest man in the world with the loudest most patronizing voice ever was on the desk. I watch him humiliate 6 people before he got to me, I was quite sure I had all my ‘correct papers’ to be given a waiting number for the booth, until, I quote, ‘Ok honey you have done well, you have papers from this section and this section (he holds out the instructions) but you have not managed to get a piece of paper from this section (motioning to section like it is a prize on ‘the price is right’ back of the hand sweep) so you go back and have a look around for this and come back to me when you have everything I need to ‘process you’ OK fake grin as he
looks over my head and onto the next person while waving his hand to shoo me away like a bad foreign smell’ and so I must return again at a later date armed with ‘proof of address, but I can pick from the list of options, one from the top and 2 from the bottom. Like countdown. Am tempted to ask for a vowel when I get there next time! But at work I was also given my private health care ‘papers’ which means I can get my massage booked and paid for along with many other benefits I am entitled to but will not need, fingers crossed.
After spending a small fortune on a new one-piece (swimming costume) I finally managed to take the elevator (lift) down 7 flights to the pool. Where I was the only person using it. I swam outside and inside and floated around like I owned the place for a happy 50 mins before getting bored with my inability to swim more than 5 mins without getting tired out and promptly hopped into the sauna to relax. Again had it all to myself. Can deff get used to this! Got info on
the ‘in-house’ yoga classes and the ‘ball-balance’ classes that start in may. And they are closer as I only have to go down 6 flights in the lift! But I think I will have to carry (will probably just roll it) the HUGE blowup balance ball with me to class each week, I suppose its better than having it as an ornament in the living room.
This weekend I found the local movie store (blockbuster equivalent) its called Mr. Movie and hired (rented) ‘blood diamond’ and ‘Elizabeth town’. I wanted some action and some chick flick but as it turned out, the Elizabeth town one was much more of an arty film which I loved, very funny in a dark sense of humour way based around a funeral and contemplating suicide but brilliantly written and a visual gem about journey’s metaphorically and literally. Loved it. Watch it. Brilliant. And blood diamond, hard hitting, and no shying away from the facts, in your face brutal. Next time you get your diamonds ask where they came from. (I am sure tiffany is a good source! Bling) worth watching. Both get a good 8/10.
And finally, shopping. Pleasant way to spend a
Sunday ‘needed’ new blue jeans (jeans) and know that they are a nightmare to shop for but this was a nice new experience. As soon as I pick up anything is a clothing store (shop) I sales assistant will come over and offer to ‘open a changing room for me’ and take the clothes, then follow me round, in the background so’s not to be intrusive, and each time I pick something will take it off me and put it into my changing room, laid out nicely on the sofa and hooks. They will also walk round and pick things out that compliment your choices too. Ideal! And they stay by the changing room while you try stuff on to make sure you have the right size etc. took the opportunity to try on loads of things and found ‘the perfect jeans’. And then onto ‘Canadian tyre’ (b&q) for some Tupper wear stuff and door hooks. On my way there I see lots and lots of Indian people wearing yellow and orange turbans with the women wearing sari’s with amazing beading sparkling in the sunshine, as I get closer I hear singing and shouting in celebration of something, I don’t
know what because they are talking in their own language (am guessing Indian), children dressed in national costume and notice a huge gathering in one of the main squares. 1000,s of them, all together a blast of colour and cooking smells wafting. I casually walk towards the crowd in the main square and very quickly stand out like a sore thumb. There were no other white people anywhere in sight, there were food tables laden with curries, pakoras and things I did not know, but as I walked past they handed things to me to try and tried to tell me in broken English what it was, some of it was delicious and some not so! So I stayed for a while, immersed in the colour and the atmosphere not having a clue what they were celebrating but it didn’t really matter. Before heading off to buy my door hooks…
Have attached some pics taken over the weekend of, the view from my balcony, over the lake and of the CN tower, street scenes and dog-walking etc…
Enjoy..x
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