Queen's Park 2007

Monday, July 23 3:55pmEST



I sit alone in Queen's Park with the train rumbling below my feet. It's a peaceful day. Truly inspirational. I wish I had my sharpie to immortalize myself in this table at which I sit. Although I've seen and heard things that demonstrate Toronto's flaws, I still can't help but love it. The fact that I feel free to walk and explore or stop in a park is new. Not that I couldn't do that in Chicago but I don't. I wish I'd bought Felicia here cause she would've loved it - the quiet solitude, the black squirrels and leaves rustling in the trees. I'm glad I have this alone time even though I was flustered trying to figure out what to do today. This is a welcomed rest after walking Queen Street West and spending more money that I didn't need to, but lots of people spend money on things that make them happy. Toronto...Ontario makes me happy. This extra week before getting back to the hustle and bustle of CHI life keeps the stress of reality away. I'm already looking ahead to next year and doing the final phase of the UGRR at the north end of Ontario - the Owen Sound area and Collingwood to hopefully participate in Emancipation Day 2008. Of course though I still want to do at least a week in Vancouver, realizing of course that it's cheaper to fly WestJet within Canada than travelling by air from here.









I paused there a moment to snap a few photos and take in the scenery - babies toddling by, 2 guys doing yoga, a couple students reading, which makes sense seeing as how we are on the U of T campus. A Japanese guy just sat down to ask me to participate in a survey he's conducting using a memo pad, a pen and 2 questions: What is creativity? Why is English a hard language to learn for foreigners? Of course, I had a lot to say about both but I was limited to the pages size.









Oh well, I had to pause again to chat with mom back in the CHI. It's getting dark now so I guess I'll walk down to the next TTC subway entrance and get back downtown to eat dinner.