Driving home
So I left evildrgo at the Marriott and made my way home. I didn't do this the sane way. Instead, I went out on a small adventure in downtown Toronto. By this, I meant I walked.
If you recall, the car happened to break down in the parking lot a few days ago. Well, we had it towed to our garage. My dad has been friends with the mechanics at S.T. United Motors for as long as I remember. They always do a good job, which is probably why dad keeps going back.
Well the car was towed in the morning and it was ready to be picked up in the evening. The bearings in the water pump had seized up, which had snapped the fan belt. This apparently took a long time to replace, but I was glad to be able to drive home. So I started walking east on Dundas.
They've put up huge television screens near Yonge St. which flash tacky advertisments at drivers as they go by. I'm not sure that's such a good idea. Do you really want people to be distracted as they're controlling a fast-moving hunk of metal?
Just a little further east, the street turned from business-class to ghetto. I saw some stores with no discernable English on them and witnessed a small group of young ruffians push each other around. I walked past some clean, but very old wooden houses. One of them had two boys and a girl, sitting on the steps. I could hear them talking and smelled the sweet scent of pot in the air.
Further down the road were some boring looking townhouses. Suddenly, a black SUV made a popping noise and it skidded noisily to a halt. Then it backed up and spat out the crushed remains of a blue box. Unexpectedly, it made a U-turn and sped off into the distance.
I walked past a couple of schools which had very empty looking playgrounds. But one of them had a glass hallway that was filled with plants. Across the street was a duplex, where the person upstairs had filled their window with greenery and left the light on. It was nice to see that in the middle of winter. Although there was no snow on the ground, all the grass was still brown and dead.
Don Valley Parkway North
Originally uploaded by sfllaw.
Later, I passed a bar that was closed. That didn't matter, because the flat above it seemed to be throwing a very loud party. Next door was a veterinarian's office which was also closed. That also didn't matter, because a small dog started growling at me. He chased after my heels and I waved hello at him. "Gus," a woman called, "here boy." Two women walked towards the little dog and he ran away from them. The blonde sighed in exasperation.
I crossed the Don Valley Parkway and stared northbound at the cars whizzing past. Then I noted where the entrance was and kept on walking. Soon afterwards, I walked past a big plywood fence covered in posters, with a hole cut out for the "POST NO BILLS" warning. Then I came upon the garage.
The car was parked out front, so I went over to the door and reached into my coat. I dropped an envelope full of cash in the mail slot, just like a proper secret agent, and walked nonchalantly to the car. I got in, started the car, and adjusted the mirrors. I listened to the pleasant hum that old American cars make and leaned back in my seat.
And I drove off into the night.