This past Monday there was a shooting in my neighbourhood. Three people wounded, one of them critically, at least two of them bystanders.
It happened in a strip mall just past my local grocery, at 5:40 PM. So, a safe neighbourhood at a safe time of day. Video footage shows three men get into "an altercation", then a fourth man appears and shoots one of the three. He also shot two women who happened to be nearby, then ran away. The police didn't catch or identify him, and it's unknown at this time if he knew the person he targeted.
No matter how I swing it, I can't say there is a scenario that would have put me in that specific place and time. I will say, I wanted to buy bamboo from the dollar store to trellis my tomato plants. From the dollar store, I would have been well within earshot to hear the shots. But instead I took a nap. Remind me to take a nap after work every day from hereon out.
But even if I had gone to the dollar store, I would probably have shown up at like, 7:30, as I am a bit of a procrastinator and don't love going shopping directly after work. Still. If I had run out of paints or canvases, I go the Michael's in front of that shooting. If I were catching up with a friend, I sometimes go the William's in front of that shooting.
This for me, I think is the spookiest case of violence that has happened since I moved to Kitchener.
There was the crossbow murder. That was spooky because it happened right near the grouphome I worked at, the target was chosen randomly, and it happened during the time of day when I would get off work. But the killer was caught and it happened well before I started working there.
There was the body that was found up the street from where I live, but who know why or where that person was killed. My neighbourhood was just a drop spot. Same thing happened in Guelph, when they found the body of a murdered prostitute next to our apartment building. I got questioned by police. They eventually found the killer and the act was done well outside the city, although the victim was a girl from our street.
There was the murderer that was discovered in our complex, that I got to get see taken down by people in unmarked vans, wearing body armour and carrying assault rifles. But he was on the run from Montreal, which is where he did his killing, and it was likely because of a personal conflict between him and his victim.
There was the shooting at Cameron Heights high school, which was right next to where I subletted from for five months after college and would walk past regularly, and the shooting happened in the morning, during school hours. I knew people who knew people who knew the target. But the only one killed was the target and it was gang-related.
But in this case, even though nobody was killed, it happened in an area I go to regularly, at a time of day that should be safe, and two people who were uninvolved were attacked. I could easily have been one of the people who got shot.
I thought about going to get bamboo today and I literally decided against it because I was scared. I wound up using recycled bamboo from last year to trellis my tomato plants. So that's one thing in favour of living in a violent area. It promotes recycling.
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
Saturday, June 22, 2019
ION Light Rail Transit
This weekend, Kitchener-Waterloo's ION Light Rail Transit system has been made available for public transportation. This is a project that has been in development since I moved to Kitchener. So, at least seven years, with millions of dollars having been put into it. I'm sure I've complained on this blog about constant detours on bus routes due to construction.
Our traditional bus schedule will be available this weekend, as well as having the LRT running. This Monday though, all the bus schedules will be adjusted to accommodate the LRT. For two weeks, all transit costs are free.
Things I like about the new system:
-I appreciate that the city is making such an investment towards people who do no have access to a vehicle
-The new trains show up more frequently than the buses did, which means I don't have to worry about missing a bus
They run far more smoothly than a bus does
-Free WiFi on trains
-Slightly faster travel times
-The trains look kind of cool, I guess
Things I don't like about them:
-There is a station near where I live. Every time a train is approaching, it has to alert traffic to stop by going DINGDINGDINGDINGDING. I can barely stand to spend time in my backyard anymore
-They have barely any seating
-They're super narrow. I saw a couple of people miss several stops in a row because they couldn't get off the bus due to crowding. I managed to get a seat once. It was one of those situations where seats are facing each other. The only way me and a fellow passenger could fit was by playing Tetris with our legs, with each of us having a knee pointed to the others crotch. Violating my personal bubble space by a good degree
- On a bus, the driver can keep the bus from moving if he notices a passenger struggling, and the passenger can keep the bus from moving by keeping the motion-sensor on the door active. On the LRT, you get off or you can'
-I'm going to have to walk like ten minutes to the nearest stop, and then ten minutes from the place I get off to my work. This will work for me, but leaving this as the only option for somebody with a mobility issue?
-They're closing Charles Street Terminal, which was a building with overpasses and roads running through it, with most of KW's buses having stops there. It had an information booth, a restaurant, a bar, and a Greyhound station as well. It is being replaced by Central Station, which is a strip of road with only two bus stops, which is supposed to cover basically every bus in KW.
-I have no idea how they're going to verify payment to board the trains. They have machines where you can purchase bus passes and tap your card to verify payment, but what's stopping someone from boarding the train without tapping?
Now let's look at some time details
I made it from Fairview Station to Block Line (local mall to home) in 2 minutes. The bus would have taken 5.
I made it from Fairview to Central Station, my new work stop, in 24 minutes. Subtracting the 2 minutes it takes to get from Fairview to Block Line, this means I will be spending 22 minutes on transit instead of 30 (but like, plus 20 minutes walking)
To get to University of Waterloo was about 35 minutes, so that saves about 15 minutes, reflecting on my time there.
To get to Conestoga Mall (furthest destination from place it starts) is 50 minutes. I think it took like an hour otherwise, so saves ten minutes.
Conclusion
The Light Rail sucks. It's far less accessible, far less comfortable due to how narrow it is, the lack of seating, and how close seating is. It feels like people will be able to cheat the system by boarding without money. It contributes to noise (because of the dinging sound)
It feels like we made a big investment to be like Toronto, but wow, we weren't ready for it. One stupid, cramped, slow train, isn't going to put us on the map, apparently
Our traditional bus schedule will be available this weekend, as well as having the LRT running. This Monday though, all the bus schedules will be adjusted to accommodate the LRT. For two weeks, all transit costs are free.
Things I like about the new system:
-I appreciate that the city is making such an investment towards people who do no have access to a vehicle
-The new trains show up more frequently than the buses did, which means I don't have to worry about missing a bus
They run far more smoothly than a bus does
-Free WiFi on trains
-Slightly faster travel times
-The trains look kind of cool, I guess
Things I don't like about them:
-There is a station near where I live. Every time a train is approaching, it has to alert traffic to stop by going DINGDINGDINGDINGDING. I can barely stand to spend time in my backyard anymore
-They have barely any seating
-They're super narrow. I saw a couple of people miss several stops in a row because they couldn't get off the bus due to crowding. I managed to get a seat once. It was one of those situations where seats are facing each other. The only way me and a fellow passenger could fit was by playing Tetris with our legs, with each of us having a knee pointed to the others crotch. Violating my personal bubble space by a good degree
- On a bus, the driver can keep the bus from moving if he notices a passenger struggling, and the passenger can keep the bus from moving by keeping the motion-sensor on the door active. On the LRT, you get off or you can'
-I'm going to have to walk like ten minutes to the nearest stop, and then ten minutes from the place I get off to my work. This will work for me, but leaving this as the only option for somebody with a mobility issue?
-They're closing Charles Street Terminal, which was a building with overpasses and roads running through it, with most of KW's buses having stops there. It had an information booth, a restaurant, a bar, and a Greyhound station as well. It is being replaced by Central Station, which is a strip of road with only two bus stops, which is supposed to cover basically every bus in KW.
-I have no idea how they're going to verify payment to board the trains. They have machines where you can purchase bus passes and tap your card to verify payment, but what's stopping someone from boarding the train without tapping?
Now let's look at some time details
I made it from Fairview Station to Block Line (local mall to home) in 2 minutes. The bus would have taken 5.
I made it from Fairview to Central Station, my new work stop, in 24 minutes. Subtracting the 2 minutes it takes to get from Fairview to Block Line, this means I will be spending 22 minutes on transit instead of 30 (but like, plus 20 minutes walking)
To get to University of Waterloo was about 35 minutes, so that saves about 15 minutes, reflecting on my time there.
To get to Conestoga Mall (furthest destination from place it starts) is 50 minutes. I think it took like an hour otherwise, so saves ten minutes.
Conclusion
The Light Rail sucks. It's far less accessible, far less comfortable due to how narrow it is, the lack of seating, and how close seating is. It feels like people will be able to cheat the system by boarding without money. It contributes to noise (because of the dinging sound)
It feels like we made a big investment to be like Toronto, but wow, we weren't ready for it. One stupid, cramped, slow train, isn't going to put us on the map, apparently
Monday, June 17, 2019
Dreams June 2019
I've been having some real screwed up dreams lately.
I had one recently where I was at a party, and when I was looking out a window, I noticed that a building was collapsing. I watched for a bit and noticed that it was happening continually, and that the phenomenon was coming in our direction. I instructed everyone else to get as low to the ground as possible and turn off all the lights.
Turns out, the people behind this were a group of zombie-looking people who could set anything they gazed upon on fire. We did our best to avoid them, but they found us. Fortunately, they decided that someone in our ranks was a prophet and decided to let him and all of his friends travel with him (I wasn't the prophet).
We had no choice but to travel with them, or else they would burn us alive with their glare. These zombie-people would look at things, state that they were "sinful" and burn them to ash. One thing they considered sinful was the action of eating. So to survive, we all had to travel with the zombie-people, slowly starving, trying to pick up scraps when they weren't looking.
Then the next day I had a dream where I was a member of a traveling band of warriors in medieval times. We were ambushed by a group of enemies, and the people on my team made short work of them by sticking them full of arrows. I got one guy by throwing a spear at him.
But right while we're celebrating, this guy I impaled shows up and throws a spear at our team. He tags one of my teammates, but I grab the spear, impale him again and slit his throat.
He bleeds and gurgles, but he doesn't die. At this point I pull out a spellbook and start hitting him with dark magic, but while it does a lot of damage to him, such as blowing up one of his eyes and one of his cheeks, it doesn't kill him.
I start panicking, knowing that he is only a victim of circumstance and not a true enemy, and I want to put him to rest. My allies drag me off, saying he can't die.
If any of you have an interpretation of these recent dreams, let me know!
I had one recently where I was at a party, and when I was looking out a window, I noticed that a building was collapsing. I watched for a bit and noticed that it was happening continually, and that the phenomenon was coming in our direction. I instructed everyone else to get as low to the ground as possible and turn off all the lights.
Turns out, the people behind this were a group of zombie-looking people who could set anything they gazed upon on fire. We did our best to avoid them, but they found us. Fortunately, they decided that someone in our ranks was a prophet and decided to let him and all of his friends travel with him (I wasn't the prophet).
We had no choice but to travel with them, or else they would burn us alive with their glare. These zombie-people would look at things, state that they were "sinful" and burn them to ash. One thing they considered sinful was the action of eating. So to survive, we all had to travel with the zombie-people, slowly starving, trying to pick up scraps when they weren't looking.
Then the next day I had a dream where I was a member of a traveling band of warriors in medieval times. We were ambushed by a group of enemies, and the people on my team made short work of them by sticking them full of arrows. I got one guy by throwing a spear at him.
But right while we're celebrating, this guy I impaled shows up and throws a spear at our team. He tags one of my teammates, but I grab the spear, impale him again and slit his throat.
He bleeds and gurgles, but he doesn't die. At this point I pull out a spellbook and start hitting him with dark magic, but while it does a lot of damage to him, such as blowing up one of his eyes and one of his cheeks, it doesn't kill him.
I start panicking, knowing that he is only a victim of circumstance and not a true enemy, and I want to put him to rest. My allies drag me off, saying he can't die.
If any of you have an interpretation of these recent dreams, let me know!
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Garden 2019
I finally got the garden in last week. I'm growing mainly from transplants because it was so late in the season and I didn't want to get left behind. I was surprised they still had such a variety at my nearest garden centre. You had to buy them individually though, instead of from those six-pack little black plastic trays. Wound up costing a lot more than usual. Cheapest way to plant by far is with seeds, but we have some kind of critter that really likes eating seedlings.
Unfortunately I can't show a picture of it because when I took a photo with my phone, then tried to email it to myself, it said the image was past the limit, even though that's how I've always uploaded images. I've got an actual camera somewhere, maybe I can try with that. Can't do it now though, it's raining.
It's been really cold and really rainy this season.
This year I'm growing a real variety.
I've got cherry tomatoes, which were the largest producers last year. I got regular tomatoes even though they didn't ripen before the end of the season last time (ate a lot of fried green tomatoes though). I've got cucumbers, which I'm going to trellis this year, didn't know you could do that last time. I'm not doing peppers this years, as they didn't produce last time. A guy I know who grows peppers said that light conditions have to be pretty much perfect for them, and I have a tree that casts some shade on my plot.
Aaaaand as far as new crops go, get ready for this: I've got watermelon, honey dew, cantelope, pumpkins, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. My roommate really wanted to try for watermelon, even though I think that one will be difficult with our shade condition, but why not, let's try it. And since we're doing one melon, let's try the other two as well.
I also planted some snow pea and sunflower seeds just to see if anything happens.
Last year I put the tomatoes in the front, which grew large and produced, but this year I've put them in the back, as well as the cucumbers since they should be tall when I trellis them, so they don't cast shade on the other crops. Then I put the sprawlers such as the melons and pumpkins near the centre so they've got room to grow, and the short plants such as the broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbages are near the front. The snow peas are around the perimeter of the chicken wire fence, so they can climb it. Sunflowers are in jiffy pots for the time being.
You may think that sounds crowded, but last year I had a really crowded garden and all the plants were at least healthy, even if they didn't produce a ton. I want to collect data on what works with the soil here and what doesn't.
So far, it looks like broccoli and cauliflower work! They have already developed what looks like miniature heads of their crop.
My next door neighbour is growing a garden, so I've got a rival to compete with. A bunch of upper unit people are growing from pots and really wanted to plant in my garden because I had some success last year, but once you start doing that, people start claiming vegetables and getting entitled to your space. I ain't running a community garden. I wound up planting under the cover of night, partly to avoid people trying to get me to let them plant in my space. The next day I was like "Well! All the space is used up!"
Last year some upper unit guy tried to plant mustard seed in my garden without my permission. My roommate caught him in the act and chased him off.
At work somebody gave all the staff spice plants. I threw them in a corner of the garden, but I don't really know what I'm doing with those.
That blue hyacinth I brought back from the dead at work also got put in the garden. It was looking pretty sickly by the time it got there, but if it came back once more, it wouldn't be the first time it's cheated death. Worth a try.
Unfortunately I can't show a picture of it because when I took a photo with my phone, then tried to email it to myself, it said the image was past the limit, even though that's how I've always uploaded images. I've got an actual camera somewhere, maybe I can try with that. Can't do it now though, it's raining.
It's been really cold and really rainy this season.
This year I'm growing a real variety.
I've got cherry tomatoes, which were the largest producers last year. I got regular tomatoes even though they didn't ripen before the end of the season last time (ate a lot of fried green tomatoes though). I've got cucumbers, which I'm going to trellis this year, didn't know you could do that last time. I'm not doing peppers this years, as they didn't produce last time. A guy I know who grows peppers said that light conditions have to be pretty much perfect for them, and I have a tree that casts some shade on my plot.
Aaaaand as far as new crops go, get ready for this: I've got watermelon, honey dew, cantelope, pumpkins, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. My roommate really wanted to try for watermelon, even though I think that one will be difficult with our shade condition, but why not, let's try it. And since we're doing one melon, let's try the other two as well.
I also planted some snow pea and sunflower seeds just to see if anything happens.
Last year I put the tomatoes in the front, which grew large and produced, but this year I've put them in the back, as well as the cucumbers since they should be tall when I trellis them, so they don't cast shade on the other crops. Then I put the sprawlers such as the melons and pumpkins near the centre so they've got room to grow, and the short plants such as the broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbages are near the front. The snow peas are around the perimeter of the chicken wire fence, so they can climb it. Sunflowers are in jiffy pots for the time being.
You may think that sounds crowded, but last year I had a really crowded garden and all the plants were at least healthy, even if they didn't produce a ton. I want to collect data on what works with the soil here and what doesn't.
So far, it looks like broccoli and cauliflower work! They have already developed what looks like miniature heads of their crop.
My next door neighbour is growing a garden, so I've got a rival to compete with. A bunch of upper unit people are growing from pots and really wanted to plant in my garden because I had some success last year, but once you start doing that, people start claiming vegetables and getting entitled to your space. I ain't running a community garden. I wound up planting under the cover of night, partly to avoid people trying to get me to let them plant in my space. The next day I was like "Well! All the space is used up!"
Last year some upper unit guy tried to plant mustard seed in my garden without my permission. My roommate caught him in the act and chased him off.
At work somebody gave all the staff spice plants. I threw them in a corner of the garden, but I don't really know what I'm doing with those.
That blue hyacinth I brought back from the dead at work also got put in the garden. It was looking pretty sickly by the time it got there, but if it came back once more, it wouldn't be the first time it's cheated death. Worth a try.
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