Friday the 13th Again

Because February is the only month that is exactly four weeks (except on leap years), this means that all the dates in March are the same except the last three. So the only way to have two Friday the 13s in a row is for the first one to be in February. Which it was this year, same day as the fire.

Yesterday was our second, marking one month since it happened. The weather suited the occasion. After three days of warmth, we were hit by a blizzard. I didn't bring boots or a coat to work because it looked innocent enough when I left.

This was also the last day to fit within the building's original estimate of three to four weeks before residents could move back in. 

The bad luck came, although not as dramatically as last time. We received an update to their estimate saying that it would actually be about three months. Whether that is counting from the event, or from now, was unclear.

My brother's birthday was on the 12th, and that day some people came to clean and deodorize the items still in the apartment. Unfortunately, a few things were considered unrecoverable. Among these were a computer chair and some bar stools. The latter is a little disappointing, as Lee-Anne and I got them new as a housewarming gift for them. They'll be compensated for it by their tenant's insurance, but still.

There were also a list of things considered under review. Among these were some of my paintings. Specifically these ones:

 

It's too bad, as these are sentimental and difficult to replace. They also survived the first fire, which hurts to see them lost in a second one. If they are, we don't know yet.

Lee-Anne and I visited the apartment today. Her family had given my mother and brother a couch and arm chair from the home of Lee-Anne's then recently-deceased grandmother. Those pieces of furniture were sturdy and likely older than my mom. There was no indication whether or not they were considered recoverable.

One funny thing I noticed was that the worker's actually used their whiteboard. To write some series of numbers that I don't know the meaning of. Lee-Anne drew the face of a cat next to it.

Behind a mattress that was set against a wall, I found a piece of paper with a note that just said "NO!". 

A collage of family photos had its frame cracked.

We rescued my brother's cactus and brought it back to our place. It's only just due to be watered and looks no worse for wear. 

They Found the Arsonist

The person that caused the fire at my mother and brother's building has been caught. Here's an article.  

https://kitchener.citynews.ca/2026/02/26/arson-charges-laid-for-fire-at-kitchener-apartment-building/

They didn't release a name, but we know it was a 32 year old man. They did include a potentially non-exhaustive list of charges put against him. Most of them seem what you would expect of an arsonist, ie, use of a disguise and tools, disregard for human life etc. The only somewhat interesting detail in there is that he broke probation, meaning that he's likely a repeat offender.

When something like this happens, you always want to know why the person did it. Was it simply for the sensation of creating a huge fire? Was it to impact a large number of people? Was it targeted toward someone in the building, or the company that runs it? We'll likely never find out.

Here's another article, from before he was caught. This one includes a photo of him on the night of the event. I wanted to post the pic directly on here, but I think they protected the image somehow.

 https://www.ctvnews.ca/kitchener/article/police-release-photo-of-person-tied-to-fire-at-kitchener-apartment-building/

 In my initial post on the topic, I mentioned the coincidence of it happening on Friday the 13th. At the time, the fire was considered non-suspicious. Now that we know it was arson, I can't help but think there may have been a bit of human intentionality on choosing that specific date.

The building has been sending us regular updates. Their present estimate is that it will take one or two more weeks before people can move back in. However, that might not be the case for my family, as they said that part of their restoration process is going to include removing pieces of the bathroom and kitchen, including the shower and cabinetry. This is only the case for people living on the first floor, which is where their apartment is.

We have been able to go into the apartment. In the emails, they said we would be able to go in for "supervised visits" which made me think that we would be monitored by staff. But you can just go, sign in and say what unit you're visiting and you can take your time. You just can't hang out or sleep there.

We've been able to get some stuff, like a folding mattress for my brother that he has from the last time he needed to stay with us due to a fire. He was just over, clearing out the bathroom and kitchen as per reccomendation from the building, so that they can do what they need next week. 

Fortunately, one of the requirements for tenancy was renter's insurance. Despite the fact that they didn't need to be provided housing, they're still getting $50 for every day that they're not in the unit. They're also getting reimbursed for the food that needed to be thrown out due to the refrigerators power being cut.

Every tenant is required to have all of their possessions cleaned. They will let us know when they go to our unit, and they encourage one of the resident's to be present while it happens. They're going about this in a relatively respectful way, but it still feels invasive. 

They have a rule against smoking in the building. This fire was like the ultimate chain smoker. 

Year of the Fire Horse

This past February 17 was Lunar New Year, transitioning from the Year of the Wood Snake to that of the Fire Horse. The Chinese Zodiac includes 12 animals and 5 elements. My mother turned 60 in 2025 which means that, for the first time since she was born, it was her animal-element combination. This should have brought great fortune, and things were going pretty well for her, until she got hit by a car, broke her leg, and got chased out of her home due to fire for the second time in a year and a half.

When I was young, maybe around ten, I had this book of Astrology which merged the Western and Eastern variants. In it, it said that the Year of the Fire Horse was considered to be the most intimidating of the 60 combinations. Apparently this was true to the point that people in China would avoid having children during this time, as those offspring would be fated either to greatness or destruction. While the Fire Horse isn't necessarily bad, it tends to evoke a sense of fear moreso than opportunity.

Considering the hardships that my family has undergone and the current state of the world, I would prefer a calm and boring year to a dynamic, high-energy one. 

Here is an article with some details on the fire that occured in my mother and brother's building:

https://www.ctvnews.ca/kitchener/article/suspicious-fire-set-in-kitchener-parking-garage-police/

In my last update, the incident was considered "not suspicious". However, since then the fire department has conducted an invesitgation and now the most likely cause is thought to be arson. The building is now conducting repairs and clearing out smoke. The damage was more advanced than their previous estimate, and so they're thinking it will be another three to four weeks before residents can move back in.

This building has operated in a much more thoughtful way than the place in Guelph did. They've provided hotel rooms to anyone that wasn't able to stay with friends of family. Now that things are looking to take a little longer than expected, they have upgrading those people to rooms with full kitchen facilities.

Apparently even though the apartments were not considered habitable by humans, they allowed people to keep their pets there. Although now they are saying that people need to find alternative sheltering options for them as they go through the units to clean them individually.

The building advertises itself as pet-friendly. When everyone evacuated, I saw many dogs and cats. I have to wonder what it looked like when they opened up the Social Room in a neighbouring building to shelter the tenants in the wake of the fire. It must have been a zoo in there. I have to imagine that the chances of some animals reacting poorly to each other was high.

Apparently all humans escaped the building in relatively good health. There were two injuries and one person was hospitalized, but is now fine. I wonder if all the pets were similarly fortunate. Articles have not mentioned this, unlike the fire in Guelph, where they did report on the two cat fatalities between the eight living there.

Since the incident, it has occurred to me that there was an additional layer of awkwardness to the situation which thankfully didn't manifest. You might remember that, a few years ago I facilitated de-escalation training to all the firefighters in Kitchener. The chances of them coming in while I was saving the cats, and needing to implement the same training I'd provided for them, on me now in a state of escalation, was non-zero.

It's tough because in neither incident were my mother or brother in any way at fault. They didn't install the air conditioner that exploded on the house in Guelph, and they didn't light the car on fire at their current location. This is gratifying on a moral level, but on the other side of things, it means that there's nothing really to learn and therefor, no way to prevent it from happening again. One might say that the same thing happening to them again is highly unlikely, but when lightning has already struck twice, it seems less improbable. Besides, if we're looking at my network as a whole, this is the third strike. I'll tell that story in a future post.

The first time, they were staying in a low-rent location that was independently owned and poorly maintained. But now they were living in a fairly professional location and it still happened. 

It's difficult to reconcile oneself with the fact that, every night when you fall asleep, you are relying on everyone choosing not to light your house on fire. Because anyone can do it, and there's nothing you can do to prepare. It's hard not to imagine how it would be more difficult to escort my mother with her still-faulty leg up a flight of stairs to get outside, and to evacuate four cats instead of just two. 

Fires Still Aren't Fun

The name of this post is a reference to one I did after the house in Guelph burned down, which itself was a reference to one titled "Floods aren't fun" when our basement apartment in Kitchener flooded. In my last update, I alluded to an event where a friend experienced a tragedy "worth being in the news". I'd meant for this update to be dedicated to that, and to use this title for it. However, yesterday something else, and closer to home has happened to earn it.

Happy Friday The 13th!

Just past midnight, I got a text from my brother saying they'd evacuated their apartment as the building's fire alarm had gone off. Them being so close, I sprinted out in my pyjamas to meet them. On the way, I saw the basement garage billowing black smoke, and when I caught up to them, they were standing in front of their lobby, billowing white.

(I should remind everyone at this point, that I'm going to be saying "my brother" and "my mother" a lot. My policy is to not use the individual names of humans on this blog. The one exception is Lee-Anne, based on her express request.)

When the alarm went off, neither of them thought it was a serious thing but felt obliged to follow instructions. Mom is still recovering from her broken leg, so my brother prioritised getting her out safely. But now that things had literally heated up, they were worried about the cats.

Firefighters were signalling people to move back, telling them that they shouldn't be breathing in the smoke. But their apartment is in the back of the building on the first floor, accessible at ground level. My brother and I decided to see if we could find our way there, to see at least if the smoke had made its way in.

There were onlookers but no firefighters. My brother wasn't exactly sure where their cat carriers were, so I ran back to our place and got one. It didn't have its grate in place, but in urgency I grabbed it and ran back, thinking I could put it together once I got back to the site. Unfortunately, I wound up fumbling with it and didn't manage to assemble it. So I abandoned the concept, jumped the railing, and went into the apartment.

The lights were out, so I turned on my phone's flashlight. The inside of the apartment wasn't as bad as the car garage or the lobby, but there was still a smell akin to incense. I found Castor in my brother's window. I grabbed him and told my brother to carry him to mine and Lee-Anne's place.

Pollux was a bit harder. I found him in my brother's closet. At first he seemed lethargic and I worried because in the house fire at Grange, one of the neighbour's cats had initially survived but later died due to smoke inhallation. He, like Castor, reacted to the smoke alarm as we passed under it. I had the impression that both of them had hidden from the noise instead of the smoke, which had unfortunately driven them into smokiest areas.

Holding him tight, I hopped the railing again and made our way to mine and Lee-Anne's place. 

I remember helping my brother and mother adopt Cassidy, and a WALES member do the same. Three years later, both those cats passed within a month of each other, both tragically young. I decided that I would never help another person with the adoption process. When my sister-in-law had barn cats and Lee-Anne felt they were fated to go family, I decided that I wasn't involved and wouldn't take any responsibility for their wellbeing.

Since then their house in Guelph burned down and we took them in. Now I found myself literally running into a burning building to save them.

They're both fine. The firefighters let people back into their apartments at 4:30 am, and they left the balcony door wide open for ventillation. If I'd left them, they would either have been exposed to the smoke an additional four hours, or they would have left the apartment to escape it. Generally, cats will find their way back home, but with the pain caused by the environment, there's no guarantee that they would have.

Mom was looking forward to the time that she would be recovered enough to visit us and see our cats. Well, it appears that necessity is the mother of invention, because we managed to get her down the stairs into our basement apartment.

They're still here. Despite letting everyone back in, the power was lost. Later, the building needed to evacuate the tenants again for repairs. They provided some hotel accomodations but there weren't enough for everybody and they encouraged those who could to stay with friends and family. Hopefully the fees associated with those accomodations incentivise them to resolve this quickly.

Mom's Progress

Mom has been improving steadily. I haven't reported all the stages of her recovery, but she's moved from using a wheelchair exclusively, to being okayed to put 50% pressure on her knee while using a walker. She had the staples in her leg removed, and now she doesn't even have the brace. This past week, she felt comfortable to return the wheelchair. The surgeon says that she no longer needs to book follow up appointments, and she's doing physio several times a week now. She says that she feels pretty confident that she'll be walking by Spring.

I need to make a confession. When I first wrote about this situation, I very loudly and confidently declared that I knew the person that hit my mom. As it turns out, I did not.

I still can't go into full details but I'd like to explain my misunderstanding. On the night that my mother was struck, I ran into two people that I know in the ER. When we received the police report, the person listed as responsible had the same first initial, and the same surname as the person I had seen that night.

I don't know anyone else with that last name! Even after I noticed, it was kind of easy to write off as a mistake from the report. A friend of mine had recently experienced a tragedy worthy of being in the news, and it got a bunch of details wrong. Same thing happened when the house in Guelph burned down. It's always a little distressing to see confirmedly incorrect reporting from supposedly trustworthy sources.

It would make more sense that something wrong happened in the reporting, then that a person with the same last name as the person I know, had hit my mom at the same time and place that the person I know was arriving at that location.

But the ages don't line up, and I've checked license plates which also don't match. I haven't had the heart to confront this person about whether or not there's a connection.

But I still kind of think there is. Another weird detail from that night is that the people I met don't live in the city, and there's a detail in the report that implies the person that hit my mom also doesn't live in the city.

I don't want to spread conspiracy theories but this is all too tantalizing! There are too many things coming together! I might just have to ask the person eventually. I almost can't handle the thought of never figuring it out 

Gmail Shenanigans

In January I went through a stint of daily updates to make my annual quota for posts. One of the topics that seemed a bit more forced was about cleaning my email inbox. Recently, that has become retrospectively more interesting.

In January's update, I said that I had received notice that my inbox was 72% full. This was an account that I'd had since I was a teenager and had made no real effort to maintain. So I didn't take much alarm, knowing that it would be years until I had to worry about it. I did use it as motivation to try cleaning it up, though. By just deleting impersonal messages in the "Social" and "Updates" files, I managed to get it down to 65%.

However, about a week or so ago, I got a notice saying that my inbox was 100% full! It came with a warning that if I didn't free up room in a month's time or buy more space through a subscription, I would be locked out of my account. How was this possible, when less than a month ago I'd dropped it from 72% to 65%?

The data breakdown said that nearly half my space was being used up by Google Photos. So I deleted enough of them to bring it down to 93%

 The next day it was back up to 100%. I wondered if this was a scam by Google to coerce me into buying more space. Maybe this was the AI bubble bursting and, Gemini failing to be profitable after such significant investment, was forcing the company to charge for previously free services.

I considered that my account could have been hacked, but I couldn't find any activity that wasn't my own.

Eventually I figured it out. I have an Android phone, which, like Google and Gmail, is owned by Alphabet. I thought that it was odd that so much of my space was being used by Google Photos even though I hadn't remembered it using a significant amount of space back when I got the 72% notice in January. But when I looked at the photos, they were all ones I'd taken.

I didn't consider this odd because I'm used to my Google accounts being synced. But it turns out that it was replicating the pictures on my phone and uploading it to my Google Photos which has a fraction of the space. So when I deleted images it would just refill itself with whatever remaining pictures that I had which it wasn't able to fit before. I must have accidentally clicked something in my settings at some point.

I managed to deativate this, and now, because I made an additional attempt to clean out my Social and Updates files when I was trying to bring it down from 100%, my inbox is now at 58%

So after like, 20 years of slow, incremental use without any attempt at managing it, in the past two months my inbox has gone: 72% - 65% - 100% - 93% - 100% - 58%

New Year's Resolutions 2026

Last year I resolved to:

• Make 35 posts to The Gryphon's Perch
• Have a total of 50 posts between my main blog and its satelites
• Walk an average of 45 km weekly
• Do strength trainings 2 times per week
• Commit to a 16 hour intermittent fasting schedule
• Seek out experiences that evoke a sense of awe
• Consume more cold media

Let's see how I did:

Make 35 posts to The Gryphon's Perch

Exactly 35, with a string of daily entries crammed into the end of December, but that's not so unusual.

Have a total of 50 posts between my main blog and its satelites

Perch: 35

Gallery: 2 

Reviews: 5 

Gryphood: 30

Total: 72 

2024's total count was 69, so this past year I actually updated a bit more frequently, although not as much to the main blog. This is likely due to creating the WALES cookbook this year. I wanted homemade images for some of the recipes when I wasn't able to get them and to make sure they worked in practice, which gave me inspiration for Gryphood entries. Although I haven't posted there since me and Lee-Anne have been helping out more with meals since Mom broke her leg. It's felt like there's a bit less room to experiment. This coming year, me and Lee-Anne have arranged a monthly hangout with some friends where we each try to make something we haven't before, so hopefully that brings it back a bit. Still an impressive year for food. 

Walk an average of 45 km weekly

I've been increasing this goal by 5 km annually since 2021. Unfortunately, it appears I've reached my natural stopping point, as I only managed a weekly average of 43.5.

Do strength trainings 2 times per week

 I waffled a lot with this, and I was bad with recording when I did it so it's a bit hard to say. Eventually, I made it a goal on my Finch App, which I wrote about on one of my final posts of 2025. I'm going into the New Year using that system to track it.

Commit to a 16 hour intermittent fasting schedule

Waffled with this too. I mentioned last year that this really helps with my ability to sleep and feel rested. I managed to get into this a number of times to the point that I was befitting from it, but had difficulty keeping to it.

Seek out experiences that evoke a sense of awe

I made this in relation to Lee-Anne reading the book Awe. I finished it this year. It's kind of hard to quantify this one. I'm sure I felt some awe.

Consume more cold media

 I read eight books! Otherwise unsure how to measure this.

 Resolutions

I'm going to retain my blogging schedule, with a commited 35 to the Perch, with a total of 50 including the satelites. I'm going to scale back my walking goal to 40 kms as I think that's a good number to push for without being unrealistic. I'm going to renew my attempts at working out twice a week, this time writing a "W" on my physical calendar whenever I do it, similar to how I record my kms. I'll try to get back into an intermittent fasting schedule as well.

I'm going to replace the goal of feeling a sense of awe with getting 50 entries in my Grattitude Jar. In my last post, I mention that I only had 48 this year, 5 less than previous. So I think it's realistic with a bit of a push to manage that, and it's easier to record.

I'll replace my cold media goal with a book count, which is a form of it. I've tried something similar in years gone by without too much success, but I've just got a Goodreads account, and they help track your progress. I've heard studies about the declining rate of book consumption, especially for men, and I'm determined to not contribute to it. I'm beating the average handily, but the next milestone they reference in statistics is people who finish 10 books. I read eight this past year. I'm really tempted to try for two more, but I believe in slow, incremental change, so I'll make my goal nine. I've already finished one.

 Last year, I did two paintings, same as the one before. So perhaps when I'm not focusing on it, I still do it twice. To push myself, I'll resolve to make three paintings.

You can see this year's paintings and last in this Gallery post:

https://gryphonsgallery.blogspot.com/2026/01/paintings-2024-2025.html 

And I would like to try three new recipes. This is a real low bar, as I think I've managed this every year  that my food blog's been active. It should just happen naturally. However, there is a reason to specifically add this. While I have 112 posts on there, I've only personally made 97. Lee-Anne, my mother and brother have the occasional post dedicated to them, and one of them is a second tzatziki recipe, which I'm not counting as it's too similar to my previous. So, I need three more to say I know how to make 100 things. Actually, one of those was "Caring for Cast Iron" which demonstrates food-related knowledge but still isn't a recipe. So I'll commit to four.

In 2026, I resolve to:

• Write 35 posts  for The Gryphon's Perch
• Write 50 total posts including the satelite blogs
• Walk 40 km weekly
• Average 2 workouts weekly
• Commit to an intermittent fasting schedule
• Make 50 entries to my grattitude jar 
• Read 9 books
• Make 3 paintings
• Try 4 more recipes