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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Miscellany

Published: 04 August 2017

Hits: 1872

When I think about it, they all do here. A stark contrast to Alberta. You can buy cigarettes, liquor, lottery tickets, all the major government subsidies, at a single store. One trip. This is amazing.

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Miscellany

Published: 04 August 2017

Hits: 1645

A hot day off, early drinking to beat the heat. Ferry over to Kootenay Bay, then the drive down to Creston, I gotta hit the prospecting shop...

I get what I need, a hand dredge and crevassing tool, good for sniping, that's my next day off's goal...

A local mural:

Absurd. Brings to mind the phrase "The road to hell is paved with good intentions", to which I'd append "...and bad slogans and murals...".

Now to check out a few of the antique shops.

1, owner or employee grumpy, behind the counter, hates the foot traffic, a lot of junk, reasonably priced, but junk, he's not getting out of his chair to show you anything, just grunts and sullenly suffers your shopping...

But a couple of other shops and I get lucky:

A vintage microphone, perfect for podcasting, just need a plug adapter to make it fit my computer, very cool.

And:

Classic piece of bad retro, spin the wheel to find the cocktail you wanna make, most I've never heard of, the ideal accessory for the hipster bar as ridiculous cocktails return to vogue...

From here to check out a couple of wineries, good, looking at the menu of one - "We politely decline all substitutions:" and steak: "Served Medium Rare".

Nice. It's good, heartening, especially in hospitality, to see a chef doing things his way. Serving you note how many people try and fuck with the food, have ridiculous special requests, "dietary allergies", ridiculous, where I work - ok, doesn't matter, but if you're trying to cook for the higher end and educated populace it doesn't hurt to remind them. Want your steak well done? Go someplace else. Can't eat this? Order something else. It made me happy, the crowd that needs to have a say in every detail of their burger, they're not the easiest to serve. This place, with it's no-nonsense menu, this would be a better clientele... 

Now the thrift shops in Creston, they open 4-7:00, ridiculously busy, lineups of thrifty shoppers, never seen this in my life, it's not a sale day, an ordinary day, they're opening a bit later than normal and for some reason that's drawn them all out like zombies...no finds here.

The drive home, it's early yet but the pall from the smoke and the fires casts a sunset glow on the side of the road...

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Miscellany

Published: 20 July 2017

Hits: 1735

3 Mice now, in as many months.

I sweep. Only once a week or so, I'm not here so much, but there's been no trace of mice. No shit, no nibbled food, no nothing. Yet, in that 3 months, I've found 3 mice dead in the toilet. Lid down, they crawled through, first through the chink in the plaster, second through the lid-down toilet, the rest you know...

Find them in the morning, double take, "Did I wake up in the middle of the night  and...", nope, ears, whiskers, I'm not the only one to report this.  Other tenants have reported the dead mouse in the toilet, only they thought it was a rat, nope, not big enough, it's a mouse, and it's dead, flush, good-bye, a poor end.

This is curious to me, I've had mice (up to 30 odd, a certain house), but never have I found one drowned dead in the toilet. Let alone 3. And no signs of them around the flat, no turds, nibbling, etc, I've only ever seen one (found him dead, in the toilet, the next morning), so, like, what's-up? Really? 

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Written by: Rod Boyle

Category: Miscellany

Published: 18 July 2017

Hits: 1638

At this time, the middle of summer, it's near impossible. Prices are both ridiculously high and cheap, depending. I've arrived in the worst possible season.

A 2 Bedroom lakefront cottage, about 12 miles out of town, perfect location, $2000 - photos, it's beautiful. But $2000 is a little - a lot - out of my reach. 

A $1500 walk out basement in Nelson. Yeah, still expensive - ridiculous, when you consider that it's a walkout basement.

And a very few other property listings, most similarly skewed, all expensive, some offering better value than others - it might just be that I have to rent a place and then find a compatible roommate - if you've met me I know you're laughing. ME too.

That's the paradox of Nelson - real estate is cheap to buy - comparatively - but you need the down payment and a legitimate job. Not common here. To rent however it's generally prohibitive. 

And if somehow I can just make it until September the tourists and vacationers will go, and there will be a glut of houses on the market, even the opportunity to get house-sitting gigs - low rent in exchange for tenancy and the look of occupation. 

But I need a place now...