Jill Browne, from home and away

The weather is only scary if you have to drive. The highway east of Calgary was shut down when I woke up this morning, and it sounds like people were stranded, cars in the ditch, people being put up in the little town of Bassano wherever they could find space. The RCMP said they would be getting out there to help people “at first light”, which I love the sound of.

Last night the wind was dramatic.

It’s grey and cloudy yet again today.

It’s actually not that bad outside now, but I’m glad I’m not going anywhere.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

One of my good friends is Ranger Julie, who is a real park ranger.  She got the nickname when stationed up high on a mountain in a hut, watching for avalanches and helping hikers along their way. She’s seen everything to do with hiking, I’m sure.  The one story I remember is of a young Italian guy hiking in the Rockies with no food and no equipment, no tent, no sleeping bag, nothing.  He didn’t realize that Canadian hiking is a little more rugged than going from hut to hut in the Alps. By the time he reached Julie’s hut he was pretty hungry!

Imagine having a job that sends you out alone on horseback with a pack horse or two, for the summer, to live alone with the hikers and the mountains.  Sounds idyllic.  Julie doesn’t do that now but in the past she has.

It’s bloody hard work.

She got to be a ranger by paying her dues.  I think her first official parks job may have been on trail crew.

You know those trails and bridges you hike across?  Trail crews go out and fix those. Sometimes when I’m crossing a bridge or walking up some impossible slope holding on to a cable, I think of the poor fearless workers who built it. Ranger Julie and her pals.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Home: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Weather today:  Around freezing and overcast all day.  No sun.

There’s lots of choice for Vietnamese food in Calgary.  It’s one of the cheaper lunches, and leaves you full for the rest of the day.

My friend was shopping at Best Buy and suggested we meet at the nearby Pho.  It’s actually called Le’s Pho, 8180 – 11 Street SE, Calgary.  Forget the address.  Get to Heritage Meadows (between Deerfoot and Blackfoot, at the east end of Heritage Drive, down on the flats).  The Best Buy is at the south end.  Le’s Pho is across the parking lot.

I’m actually having trouble figuring out if it’s Le Pho, Le’s Pho, Le’Pho, but I know the location is right.

My friend had a big bowl of beef soup, I had the chicken on top of vermicelli.  We shared an order of salad rolls.  The total bill before tip was $24.05, and as far as I could tell it was a 50/50 split.

It’s one of those Vietnamese restaurants that you find all around Calgary.  Though the outside is kind of featureless industrial, the inside has the unmistakable ambience of “let’s not spend a lot of money on the furniture and decor”, which is fine by me.

I’m not a connaisseur of this food.  I like it once in a while, and I got what I came for.  No complaints.

It was odd that the waiter didn’t want to give my friend a knife to cut the salad roll in half, though.  He seemed to find the request a bit of an outrage but complied anyway.

If this map is ridiculously small, I believe you can enlarge it and it should show you where I mean.  The little arrow may be on the back of the building, though.  That’s just a Google Maps thing and I couldn’t change it.