A couple of weeks ago, the cherry blossoms started blooming and I decided today that I’d better get some shots before they fade away. Even though during the Olympics the weather was balmy and warm, it’s been cold and frosty in the mornings. We rarely get frost, so it’s pretty weird to see the front yard all frosty on my way to work. I noticed some of the blossoms aren’t too happy with such chilly temperatures, but these ones by the water are full and bright. They are at the bottom of Granville Street on the waterfront close to the Vancouver Convention Centre.
More flowery photos below…
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I was very excited about getting this pin. I first heard about these pins from someone (who shall remain nameless, as requested) who knows someone who received one as a form of a thank you. And that person passed it on to me. Pins are just falling in my lap for some reason. They seem to be finding me. I didn’t think they’d be of interest to me after the Olympics, but I could not be more wrong. This is a cool one. This pin is a photo of a neon sign for an old dive bar in Vancouver – located in the Downtown East Side = skid road = a part of town with “character” or “history” or “rummies”. It looks like the sign was installed for the bar in 1953 and stayed up until the bar shut down in 1987. I think the sign now lives in the Museum of Vancouver. I should go over there and see it. Actually, I definitely have to get over there. They are having a display about Handmade Nation over there. I gotta get to that.
But back to the Smiling Buddha – the history of that place is pretty excellent. I am very sad I missed the experience, but I didn’t get to Vancouver until 1991. Some of my friends, however, who resided in Vancouver during this time filled me in on the place. Here are some of their stories about this seedy bar:
- There were go-go dancers in cages at that bar -Cathy Mechanic
- Alcohol wasn’t served, but people brought their own, and the establishment put tablecloths on the table so you could hide your bottles under the table. – Uh. Should I put the person’s name who divulged that? Maybe not.
- Now there was a dodgy place – Suzanne C.
- I know someone who was so drunk, she fell out of her car in front of that place, casually got up and asked the bouncer who witnessed the whole thing if he’d light her cigarette. – I think that person should remain nameless as well.
But the best comment left on my facebook profile about this raunchy place? It’s this one from Fiona:
Ha ha, I got spit on by Joey Shithead in that place. No lie. That was the end of my punk rock days – no random bodily fluids, ewwww!
What a glorious place the Smiling Buddha Cabaret was! I’m so sad I missed it.
If you’re interested in some other interesting facts about this place, there’s some info in this article. And if you’d like to be a fan of the Cabaret on Facebook like I am, you can do that right here.
Today on the twitter I was intrigued with a tweet that announced there was some type of owl hanging out across the street from the Vancouver Public Library. An owl in the city? That’s crazy. I thought they were all shy and only lived in barns, hooted at midnight and were not for sale as pets after the Harry Potter movies came out.
I had to find out more. So I did a search and found photos other people took of him.
I decided that I needed to see the owl and headed over to Homer and Georgia to see if I could find him.
Did I find him? No. Not yet. But I did find this:
I guess it’s to send a very big envelope someplace. Do you see the lamp post in the back there? Yes! It was really that big.
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Rather than wandering around aimlessly wondering what I’m going to cover next on my blog now that the Olympics are over – which, to be honest, I have been doing – I realized it’s nearly time to get going in the garden. Thank goodness! Another project to work on! Last year my garden was a complete bust. I somehow managed to grow zucchini vines but no zucchini plants. Crazy. And since I’m being honest about stuff, I started avoiding the front yard altogether due to the neighbours in the house with the crappy backyard. Since their house was so tiny, they spent the majority of the summer out in their front yard, which then led to them asking me questions about every plant in their yard and what to do with them. Pretty soon I just didn’t want to be out there. Who could possibly want to? Hanging out with my dumb old zucchini vines and answering questions about why the hydrangea plant in their yard had died. Which it hadn’t, by the way. It was just a dead flower. The plant was perfectly fine.
But it’s a new day and, in a surprise move, the owners of the tiny house with the garbage backyard (including a spare toilet) have finally mowed down the house, the sheds AND THE FENCE! Yay pudding! I am so happy to have to listen to construction noise for the next 7 or 8 months as they build the new house. And I’m pretty sure the construction workers will NOT be asking me about the rose bush. And if it’s dead. And if I could please come take a look at it.
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