A new year, hopefully filled with lots of new experiences

So it's 2010, and two days after the start of the year, I am sitting in the kitchen, warm slippers on my feet, wearing a thick sweater, enjoying that I am indoors on such a cold, windy winter day. There's a crazy storm pounding Montreal right now, I know because I've been out a few times to walk the dog and shovel snow. I was originally going to accompany my dad, sister and brother to the chalet for some snowshoeing. However, with the weather being a bit cold for comfort (damn wind) and my fighting something right now (I feel very tired and my throat has a tickle), I decided to stay home and have to admit that I'm glad I did.

A few changes in my life probably also help explain why I am feeling so tired these days. The puppy Jenna, even if she is great to have around, is a handful. She needs to be walked early in the day, usually between 6 and 6:30 am. That's my shift for now, as I started working in December and have to get up anyways. Brendan looks after her during the day, an arrangement we'll have to adjust when he goes back to work on January 18. Since my work hours are flexible, I will probably drop by the house at lunch time to feed her and let her out, at least until she is old enough to stay in her crate for 8 hours at the time. It's also hard to relax when we're always keeping an eye out for her. When she is not in the same room as us, we tend to regularly check up on her to make sure she is not destroying shows, walls, baseboard, or chewing on tea towels. Yes, puppies chew on everything, even when they have their own toys to destroy.

Work! Yes, I haven't mentioned work until now. I started a short-term contract with a non-profit organization led by a friend of mine. I am helping him figure out his business and technology strategy. A big part of the work being done by the organization evolves around a web-based community of members, so technology is a key part of their day-to-day concerns and it brings its share of trouble. The organization has pretty much set its strategic objectives, but it now needs to translate these objectives in concrete action plans, something else I am helping with. The contract was signed for two months, it might stretch a bit into February depending on the progress of various initiatives. I am not sure however that there is a long-term position in the works for me, so I am keeping my eyes open for other opportunities. Working a bit for a few months is really good for me, it keeps me busy and allows me to further develop a few skills. I am grateful for this opportunity.

Next week, I start school. I can't wait, I will be studying about a subject that I am highly passionate about. I made a large purchase in preparation for the semester: I bought a Mac Book Pro. I needed a laptop for school, to be able to take notes in class, and I only had a desktop at home. After researching the different laptop brands, I chose the Mac Book Pro. It is not the greenest laptop on the market, but it was designed with low energy consumption and recyclability in mind. The change to the Apple OS and software has not been too difficult until now, although I have only used a very small part of the available software to browse the Net and sort my pictures. I'll have to see how easy it is to work with the iWorks suite, and to convert some of my old PC files into Mac. I have to admit though that having a laptop has been really convenient. I can sit in the living room to work and I have purchased an adaptor that allows me to connect the computer to the TV to watch movies in high definition. Very nice.

Holidays were great this year, except for my grandma ending up in the hospital on Christmas day. She is OK now and under observation, but it is possible that she is no longer able to take care of herself and needs to be placed. This is not bad news, my parents have been worried about her ability to look after herself for a little while now. I will call her tonight to see how she is doing.

The pug is driving the car

I really love this weather. Although it has made unpacking a little slower than expected, I will not complain about the sun and heat. Not after the summer we've had so far.

We’re already nicely settled in, key areas unpacked and operational (kitchen, bathroom and closet), and we're now focusing on clearing out the remaining boxes before the weekend. Brendan’s grandparents are visiting from Sudbury, our first house guests!

Yesterday, after spending the morning unpacking, we decided to have brunch at the Orford Café, a small restaurant on Sherbrooke street not far from where we live. We’d been there once and the food was great, albeit a bit expensive. We sat outside, right at the corner of Orford and Sherbrooke, and ordered our meals. While we were waiting, we noticed a car slowing down on Sherbrooke, down to a halt before it crawled onto Orford at a snail’s pace. We check out the driver only to realize that it was a man in his 50’s with a fidgety pug standing on his lap. Speaking of things that will distract you from the road… I’m surprised the guy wasn't also speaking on his cell.

The car drives around a second time and the driver parks it right next to us. He gets out, along with a slender blond woman, and proceeds to get a table in a shaded area on the patio. That’s when we realized that they had left the engine running, with the AC on, with the front-seat window cracked open an inch, I’m assuming so the dog did not feel too locked in and stressed.

They left the car idling… Both Brendan and I are dumbfounded, even folks sitting next to us are staring back at the car, slightly amused and in disbelief.

We get our meal and start eating, still under shock, when we realized that we are starting to smell the car exhaust. On days where the city air is thick with smog, this idling engine is simply outrageous. I place my utensils on my plate, stand up, straighten up my dress and walk over to the table where the couple is now enjoying their coffee.

“Excuse me”, I say “you've left your car idling and we’re sitting at the table right next to it, we can smell the exhaust.” The first response the guy gives me? “Why don’t you change table?”

I see. The comfort of your dog not only beats any concern for the environment, but also the comfort of the people around you. I guess this is not one person I would win over with arguments of air pollution.

“We already started eating, and we don’t really want to move” was my next comment. He then looked around, annoyed, and pointed out to the busy Sherbrooke segment in front of the restaurant to show me that there were no other parking spaces available. There was a space a few buildings away, but he wanted to keep the car close so the dog could see them.

Oh brother.

“Why don’t you take the dog with you instead?”, I asked. After all, we’re sitting literally on the street and I've seen others have breakfast with a dog lying down at their feet. The man asks the waitress if he was allowed and she reassured him that it wasn't a problem at all.

“Yeah, I guess I can do that. Yeah, see that’s a good solution.”

I thanked him and walked back to my table. As I sat down, Brendan gave me an inquisitive look as if asking “how did you do that?” Well, no reasonable argument was going to convince this person to turn off his car engine. No argument other than the comfort of his precious fur child. I was happy of the outcome, that’s for sure, even if the reason for the change in behavior seemed completely wrong. I smiled as I saw the dog twitching on his owner’s lap as the man was trying to eat his eggs.