mr.fern

he took us camping, he taught us about the salmon run, we had a field trip to "my house", a tipi out on waugh lake, where he and tim smoked a pinner.

marty

last night i had a dream about marty, my 5th grade crush. sandy blonde hair, and he smelled like ivory. in my dream he saved me from a double decker bus crash.

ellen

wealthy girl who married the stable boy. immigrated to canada pre-depression, joyfully led a bitterly hard life. my great-grandmother watched star trek everyday because she knew one day it would be true.

jean

jean files advice under "thanks, but i'm going to try this", which is hard not to admire. what is more challenging is her unwillingness to learn from past mistakes; hers and others.

rob

rob's stories had no discernible end. or beginning for that matter. there was a feeling of having entered the conversation mid-stream, even if you were alone, in a car, with just him.

jane (not me)

"you're going to eat a loaf of meat?" i don't know who is more incredulous. she, at my dinner choice, or i, that she would criticize the food she was raised on.

jason

jason is raising a 6 year old with no maternal tendancies whatsoever. josey wales meets mister mom. but his love and devotion for that boy is what disney movies are made of.

kara

kara was good. and nice. she had nice hair, nice clothes, she always smelled nice. she drew nice pictures. she loved a bad boy who she could never have. she was good.

man who cornered me at the metrotown ticket kiosk.

too. close. i could see the pores on your nose. how canadian of me that i felt bad for pushing you back after you screamed your highly ineffective sales pitch at me.

l

his careful presentation of her gave the impression of hard edges, bitterness and ice. we all sympathized that he should be required to endure such a nasty woman. i will apologize someday.

jim

he might have small man syndrome. although never arrogant, he grants permission where none was asked. his acts of generosity and magnanimity come at a price, sometimes a price you can't afford.

bobby

the longer you are in the presence of bobby, the more convinced you become that you loved him long before ever meeting him. damn those newfies with their charming ways. best kind.

irene wilde

picks the right moment to step in with a hello, a word, a clarification. leader of rebels, inciter of riots, a soft place to land. g&t with fresh limes if you please.

hay

clad in spandex, his mission to save the planet from religion and poor movie choices. i wonder if he knows that for all his dark, his light supersedes when he's not looking.

ell

ell is someone to take cues from when approaching life's good and bad bits. grace, joy, intelligence, humour; i sound hallmarky. best to just read for oneself to see what i mean.

novella

there once was a cool pink cat called novella,
who i, for a time, mistakenly took for a fella.
she's freakishly smart
tears arguments apart.
and inside she's a big soft marshmella.

ronny

effortlessly cool, gets the joke, she, like me, is often left with a giant question mark at britney-like women. although far away, she is someone to keep close to your heart.

little leave of absence

i am going to be away for a bit, we are in the process of renovations and moving and my access to a computer is limited. i will be writing on....wait for it....PAPER, and then updating when i can. see you all soon.
j

the inksters

the rumour circulating was that they were eccentric millionaires who chose to live in their car. two #1 specials, over easy, white toast, paid for with two columns of dimes. every time.

bill #2

hair raked over his head in greasy furrows, sewn with beads of sweat and dandruffy chaff. redfaced, liquid loose eyelids, he is indignant that our bathroom is again out of paper towel.

bill #1

insatiable sweet tooth of a diabetic, suffered from obsessive compulsive disorder; everything in threes. three milkshakes, three cookies, three pieces of pie. sometimes three times a day. one of our best customers.

stephanie

we fell into friendship and hit the ground running towards a common goal; popularity. upon arrival no one was more shocked than us to realize it wasn't what we wanted at all.

micah

micah had the shit eating grin of a last born boy into a family of girls. standing in the front seat facing us, his face triumphant, chewing the last piece of gum.

jessie

jessie changed the rules mid-play; this is still her coup-de-grace as an adult. prickly, offensive, defensive, contrary, even mean. we don't always have to like the people we love.

jon

30 something suburban mom befriends 20 something urban gay man. see what happens when he tries to vamp up her image. "i am telling you!!! i CANNOT......CANNOT wear a tube top!"

connie

a mask-like layer of foundation hid nothing, she was just as awful barefaced. caustic and bitter, "he took those girls in you know." as though we'd been abandoned on the roadside.

melody

19 year old, power hungry manager of mr. donut, who was sleeping with the owner. when she fired me i knew it was for correcting her spelling mistakes on the notice board.

jenny

jenny had permed blonde hair and wore sweaters with lace dickies. infamous at school twice; when her brother drowned and when she got pregnant, but i always think of her blonde curls.

m

misogynistic little f**k, standing atop the coffee table that new years eve, grabbing his crotch, declaring '92 to be the YEAR OF THE BOOOOOOOOOOOOYS!!!! mind you, only he slept alone that night.