Shadow Over America: The Wall and the Coming Storm

We had intended to drive to Sioux Falls, but exhaustion and a series of billboards advertising Wall Drugs compel us to pull in to Wall for the night. A text from Mom and Dad informs us that they stopped here in 1966. Over half a century later, we experience the bizarre wonderland of Wall. Breakfast cost Mom and Dad 50 cents; it costs us $30, over half the cost of the very reasonable motel; bed, bathroom and wifi for $77. Wall Drug is a labyrinth of wondrous kitsch.

We move on, driving through southern Minnesota on our way to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But a sudden sudden storm drenches us, reducing visibility and velocity to near-nil. We cautiously bull our way through, and eventually realize we should tune in to local radio...and we catch an emergency bulletin in progress: "...homes immediately. Take shelter. Flying debris and structure collapse can cause death. Take shelter immediately. If you are on the highway, find the closest shelter. This is an emergency broadcast. Tornadoes wrapped in thunderstorms are proceeding through..." There is a list of counties. Are we in one of them? Did we just drive through the outskirts of a tornado?

The weather starts to clear by the time we reach Iowa; we avoid disaster through sheer dumb luck.

The Everyday Blahg Blahs

I admit it - posting every single day is taking its toll, as my ten or fifteen readers have almost certainly noticed. Sylvia suggested something simple: "Thanks for the break in the heat wave! Have a nice day!"

I will say I'm happy that Kent Hehr is seeking the Liberal nomination in the federal riding of Calgary Centre. Kent's a great guy, a hard-working politician, and a smart, realistic progressive. He'd be a great federal candidate and an even better MP - cabinet material, even. I hope he wins both the nomination and the seat. Of all the MLAs I worked with - and I worked with some very good ones - Kent always impressed me as the one with the most potential to go very far and do some real good for the country.

That's certainly no slight against Darshan Kang, who's also leaving provincial politics and hoping to win another Calgary seat for the Trudeau Liberals in the riding of Calgary Skyview. Darshan became an MLA in the same 2008 provincial election as Kent, and I enjoyed working with him as well. I remember Darshan as a particularly effective champion for the tunnel underneath the new runway at the Calgary International Airport, as well as just a plain generous human being who always treated his staff very well.

Good luck to both of them.

When You're Hot, You're Hot

Whew! It's a scorcher in Alberta's capital today - enough heat to knock out power at the corner of 124th street and Jasper Avenue and to incapacitate my afternoon bus right at that very intersection. Dead bus + no traffic lights = cranky commuters, whether on public transit or private vehicles.

Fortunately another bus rescued the two dozen or so sweaty riders belched from the doors of our fallen carriage, and despite what seemed an interminable delay escaping the gridlock on the west end of Jasper, I made it to West Edmonton Mall in time to catch a transfer home. (Normally I walk from WEM to our condo, but today I was worried I'd catch heat stroke, as I so often have in the past.)

As a creature of the north, I still find Alberta's hot summer days uncomfortable, even many years after I should have acclimatized. Since my body refuses to accept that it doesn't live in northern Manitoba anymore, I've had to take precautions such as drinking lots of water and staying in cool basements or air-conditioned offices.

How Many Times Has Earl Suffered Heat Stroke? (not a comprehensive list)

"I'll certainly be cool enough next to this fountain!"

1. Namao air show circa 1988 and again circa 1990 (rendered unto incoherence to the nervous glances of friends, skin tone: Afterburner Glow)
2. Las Vegas 2004 ("Boy, you look like a boiled lobster!" exclaimed one helpful southerner; incapacitated for one day, skin tone: Three-Cherry Jackpot)
3. Honolulu 2008 while listening to a Barack Obama campaign speech (skin tone: Republican Rage)
4. Mexico 2012 while touring Chitzen Itza (rescued by helpful Mayans and Germans, skin tone: Abashed Tourist)
5. Nelson, B.C. circa 1973 (vomited up pink ice cream, saved by parents, skin tone: Tantrum Toddler) 

Stay frosty out there.

"Hey now, someone tell that Canadian kid to put on some sunscreen."