Ride the Red Thread : January 2018

ETS License Plate SPY 858

moving a little slowly today
possibly coming down with a cold
in the cold (-22)
the day of the Super Blue Blood Moon
lunar eclipse
i think the best time to see it here
was around 5am
was it clear? was it cloudy?
i wouldn't know having slept through it
oh well
there's always next time
eyes to the sky in 2037

#307 Gold Bar

chirping serenades on a brisk morning
a short journey through the hood
refineries in the distance
news last week of birds
adapting their songs
to be heard above
the white noise of industry
winged ones perched high
among treetops
as a Featherlite truck rolls by

Bus #4612

'Stay back 15 metres'
'Humanities 101 this way'
the dubious driving of other vehicles
Fleet Services repair in action
at the Transit Centre stop
tending to lazy wiper blades
lessons in how things work
and a chalkboard sign on Whyte Ave
encouraging us all to
'Stay Magical'

#106 Lessard

the day begins with a museum of waxwings
bright beaming sun
everything bathed in white
(the bunnies will be relieved)
a fidgety toddler with a small moose stuffie
a passel of passengers
a stumble of trips
an anchoring of routes
Belgravia Road and Fox Drive
reminding me of a photo last week from London
a wayward fox outside 10 Downing Street
Meadowlark Road
and a bevy of larks

Northgate Transit Centre

waiting on a return trip
a question from a fellow traveller
do i know this address?
(brought up on her phone)
will the #9 to Eaux Claires take her there?
i apologize for not knowing
and suggest the app
but she seems content with her earlier route planning
could she use a ticket?
maybe for tomorrow
a hand off of the Red Thread envelope
(yesterday's vignette/tomorrow's ticket)

as i ride away i see her bus pull up
she waits to board along with all the other passengers
headed to Eaux Claires

warm at home now
i hope she made her way
in the wind and the snow

#140 Northgate

snowfall warning in effect
it comes and comes
and keeps on coming
scarfed and swaddled
glasses fogged up
not a day for note taking
an exchange of smiles
across the aisle
slow going as the bus
nearly gets stuck in the ruts
on 97th street
the tall elms oblivious to it all
branches boughs bent
not breaking
they've seen this show before

Bus stop #1128

waiting with the smokers
outside of City Centre
a curious blend of smells:
grapefruit, tobacco, baby powder
a woman with striped black and white
grocery bags
reminds me of the Zebra pedestrian crossings in London
and the advice on the tube to 'Mind the Gap'
here we have 'Watch Your Step'
printed on the rails
at rear ('back door please!')
exits of the bus
no matter how you say it
safety first on both sides of the pond

#85 Downtown

a sleepy, overcast day
snow cyclists and snow cycles
(weather warning for the city)
turquoise pipes
and pieces of asphalt
construction everywhere
riding past St. Andrew's
---the patron saint of fishermen---
and the Riverboat Queen
(wasn't she moored last year?
not enough water in the river...)
across the low level bridge
and up the hill by the MacDonald
more detours
more jack hammering
more future LRT busyness

On the LRT between Stadium and Coliseum Stations

parked in an industrial yard in Cromdale
is the Chinatown gate that once stood
on 102nd avenue and 92nd street
it was opened in October of 1987
and was named the 'Harbin Gate'
in honour of our sister city in China
by the gate stood a pair of lions
whose tongues people would rub
for luck and bravery
the gate has been moved
during construction of the Valley Line LRT
it's not yet known where it will be relocated
for now you can see it
from the window of the train
where it rests
waiting to be resurrected

Bus #4826

on the bus today i found myself wondering
about the voice of the woman
who announces all the stops
who is she? where is she from?
how long did it take her
to read and record all of the destinations
for routes along the ETS?
did she have a voice coach?
did they have to do retakes?
('read that one again...
with a little more enthusiasm')
is she even real
or is it some kind of artificial intelligence
that annunciates the vowels and consonants
into what sounds like a person speaking the words
i found myself thinking about that today
long after i got off the bus
my 'stop requested'

#7 Downtown

a bouquet of flowers
a silver suitcase
a kind gesture by an older man in a forest green fedora
to the mother of the toddler who dropped her juice box
someone reading a book
someone on their phone
someone else on their phone
many others on their phones
a bright pink puffy jacket
a felt teal coat
all of us serenaded enroute by a little girl singing
three young friends laughing and bidding
a fellow disembarking passenger
'au revoir'
the sudden sirens of five speeding fire engines
and for several moments silence
as everything just stops

Bus #4181

today on the bus a familiar face
a woman i saw last week
on the LRT to Century Park
i remember she was busy
cleaning her handbag
while seated on the train
i wonder if i will see her again
on any of my Red Thread trips

news this morning of the rising waters
on the shores of the islands of Kiribati
in the Pacific
threats to their country
due to climate change

paths that cross
and then diverge
reminders that one way or another
we're all connected

#3 Jasper Place

north on 101
past People's Pharmacy
onto 107 west
and Far East Dental
Mandela Cafe, Pilot Driving School
and Little Golden Daycare
the two sides of the Municipal Cemetery
and the Earth Mother Temple
turning onto 124th
with fond memories of The Roxy

the St. Francis Pet Hospital on 118
the Big Foot Pub
and the ghosts of Coral Bowl
ushering in the industrial park
one labourer enjoying a smoke
bricks
pallets
construction
rounding the Transit Centre
heading back again
and on the corner:
Lucky Aces

ETS Mitchell Garage

a humid, foggy day
toques and gloves for some
short pants for others
not a sight you see everyday:
a bus shelter being towed
on the back of a flatbed
up Grierson Hill
maybe time for a little maintenance?
fine tuning?
TLC?
two elderly men with canes
stepping tentatively onto
icy sidewalks
safe journeys everyone

WEM Transit Centre

the connecting point for many passengers
a centre point for journeys
buses bound in all directions
some routes i know well
others yet to be travelled
a bit of melancholy today
thinking of neighbourhoods
that once were home
a hub of memories
some familiar faces along the way
sometimes this city of nearly a million
feels like one
big small town

#112 WEM

down 98 ave past the site
of the new Capilano Library
through Ottewell and Holyrood
a careful and considerate driver
waiting for passengers to be seated
Strathearn Drive/Connors Road
sunlight on the Muttart pyramids
someone seated near the front
rolling yarn into a ball
---a kindred spirit!---
south on 142nd past
MacKinnon and MacKenzie Ravines
and Buena Vista Road by the Valley Zoo
(home to red pandas)
many pandas sightings the past few days:
hat, pants, earmuffs
the crows of Laurier
indifferent to it all

#78 Ellerslie

heading out from Century Park
up 23 avenue towards
South Edmonton Common
Parsons Road and Ellerslie Crossing
a dog being walked
in a large snowy field
and a sign for 'rezoning'
where there are long grasses now
will there one day be houses
with manicured lawns?
reminded of my Dad's old 78 rpms
heavy vinyl
obscure organ music
they don't get played
anymore

LRT Century Park

walking down to the platform
against the flow of fellow passengers
feeling like a salmon spawning
against the tide
riding backwards on the train
and enjoying the perspective
reminded that not all do
(makes some people queasy)
the trip unfolds in the wake before me
the ever expanding past

#130 NAIT

bright yellow Butterdome
melting in the sun
down past Hawrelak Park
(i remember when it was Mayfair)
and Emily Murphy
of the Famous Five
up Victoria Park Road
and the shrouded golf course
two departing by Le Marchand Mansion
in matching handknit toques
past the row of leaning elms on 116th
east on the Avenue of Nations
and is that a friend crossing the street?
no, just someone who looks like him
his doppelganger out
enjoying a mild Wednesday in January

University Transit Centre

last night's freezing rain
makes for slippery sidewalks
and icy feathered William Morris-like
patterns on windows

after morning classes
students waiting to board buses
and one young guy
with a silver tipped pen
busy tagging:
bus bench
advertisements
plexiglass on the shelter

a modern day Morris?
maybe...

#2 Clareview

bright sun on a new moon
for some a day for shorts and sandals
east on Jasper
overlooking Dawson Bridge
towards Highlands
and the Thistle curling rink
along the way some media theory
at the Marshal McLuhan house
a little accordion music
at Gaby Haas park
and the formation of K-Days
and Oil Kings
on the Leo LeClerc Bridge
cattails and tall grasses
along Manning Drive
and the promise of
Boot Scootin' Boogie
on the 2

something for everyone

west bound on Jasper/101 street

and with each vignette i wonder
'who will be reading this?
what will you think of it?
where do you come from?
where are you going?'

today i watched as a man
opened the envelope
pocketed the bus ticket
and threw the rest away
on the floor of the bus
i guess (sadly) not all threads
will be so successfully woven

#8 Millwoods

a route full of promises including
North Millbourne Community League:
'Oh boy do we have programs for you'
blue Goodwill buggy in the snow
St. Hilda School
(patron saint of learning, culture and poetry)
J. Percy Page
Lieutenant Governor
and coach of The Edmonton Grads
women's basketball champs
of the 20's and 30's
on the way back an awesome pair
of embroidered Panda pants
a reminder of what a friend said years ago
'fashion was never more 70's than the early 80's'

#8 Millgate

south on 83rd
past the Komatsu workers
digging up the street
with impressive Star Warslike
monster machinery
a reprieve from the extreme temps
but still chilly
('feels like -20')
drafty by the bellows
of the accordion bus
a sleepy passenger near the back
will he miss his stop?
at least he'll be warm in spirit
as we pass through
the drop off for kids:
'the kiss n' ride zone'

LRT NAIT

'I am a passenger
And I ride and I ride...'
~ Iggy Pop

and we are all passengers
riding along together
yet separate
more or less in silence
to our individual destinations

passenger (origin: Old French
passager 'passing, transitory')

and on these transit lines
we are all making our way
passing through

#9 Southgate

years and years before The Accidental Beach
there was a small sandbar that gradually emerged
just off the north bank of the North Saskatchewan
west of the High Level Bridge
over time i watched it grow
getting a little larger each season
now a miniature snow covered island
a grassy knoll in the frozen river
***
and for icy city sidewalks:
'Sand Box
if empty
call 311'

#57 Downtown

'a multi-day episode of very cold
wind chills is expected
an Arctic airmass continues
to produce extreme cold conditions
over much of Alberta
temperatures will moderate
somewhat today
but very cold temperatures are expected
once again this evening and again
overnight
extreme cold puts everyone at risk'
***
a morning sundog:
beautiful rainbow arcs in the sky
swaddled, huddled passengers
including one lemon yellow jacketed/
black beanie bee
down Whyte past the cat cafe
(Ginger tabby in the window)
up 99 street/Scona Road
past a crashed out car and fallen tree
with each departure the driver's salutation:
'bye now and be careful please...
take care'
yes please
be careful bee

#151 Castle Downs

northbound on 101st
past 102nd ave 'permanently closed'
sirens on a clear and cold day
a route of parks:
Grand Trunk park
Touchdown park
Cumberland park
Oxford park
and at the end of the 151 line
Castle Downs park
on the way back
sleepy riders
and dormant soccer fields
basketball courts
and playgrounds
the sun starts to set
over trains cars sitting still
as a windsock blows over
the CN Walker Yard

a little inspiration

yesterday
eastbound on Stony Plain Road
a young guy in a royal blue hoodie
shivering a bit
transfer in hand
i asked if he could use a bus ticket
and explained a little
about Ride the Red Thread
as we chatted he mentioned
other stops he had to make
that would take him to Castle Downs
as he departed on Jasper
we shared a fist bump
and he said
'now you have something
to write about'
this one's for him