Feb. 11th 2010

It'll all start tomorrow. Tonight the city sleeps... or tries to, the anticipation is thick. The buses aren't running on super schedule yet and the locals haven't all taken to biking. It's raining to boot, that'll always bring Vancouver to a halt.

We deliberate. One more six pack. Fairview pub. We walk.

Canada after Canadian after Canadiana bullshit and Go Canada Go to greet Blen into the cold beer and wine store, I wait with my bike.

The window is dirty but I can still peer through, a scene unfolds, the urge to grab my camera escalates and the hassle of sifting through my bag kills it. The man inside nodded to us on his way in. He thought we dropped our change, went to pick up a loose penny and just could not do it. I swore the penny was one of those crazy glued to the sidewalk, even told him so. But his mini glove finger cut off hand grasped that worthless penny eventually and raised it back into our ungrateful palms. A penny, they're not even making them anymore. Inflation smation.

The man walked in behind Blen who followed the lady with the dog. Now the man greets her, the dog warming up to him. He pets the dog, jokes around, things go well. And then it barks, we all saw it coming. Everyone tries to remedy the situation, it all fails, some people are just awkward and some animals just know it.

Through the glass I see Blen coming. I light the joint, Blen steps out with the 6 pack, the cheaper one and we leave.