30 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

Oh, my, what a day.

We’re waiting on paperwork. It seems as if we’ve been waiting forever. There’s a lot of things that go into moving this much stuff over the border. And I’m not knocking the rules, as I understand they are there for our protection. That’s why I hired someone to help us with navigating this process, to make it smoother for us.

In the hopes that the paperwork would be ready en route, we started driving today. The goal was to at least get out of Toronto, and THAT in and of itself was an ordeal. Canada, I love you. Great beer, wonderful people, and poutine. However, your roads and the civil engineering that went into them are pretty atrocious. So, into the traffic, and the rain, and the traffic, and the rain, and the traffic we plunge, hoping against hope that we’d get clearance before we got to the Port Huron border crossing.

Didn’t happen.

Now, trapped in Sarnia, Onterio, about a half-mile from the border, I think you can see how well THAT’S working out for me. Turns out, the firm I hired to take care of these details, well, didn’t, not really. I’m four kinds of livid. And we’re stuck, burning daylight, burning time, burning money, and impacting our other jobs–all because the people I hired to do the paperwork didn’t do the very basic thing they were supposed to do in the first place.

The brokers open at 8 AM tomorrow. At 8:01, I’m going to call and sit on them until I get clearance papers to cross the border. After the lengthy wait to cross, me and Mike are going to take turns driving and get back to Texas as soon as we can.

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30 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

It’s Monday morning, and we are merely waiting on the bureaucrats to generate a number that will allow us to cross. We’re going for breakfast. It’s gotten very dull in the hotel room. We’re packed up, but we’ve no place to go, yet.

Here’s a picture of one of the hundreds of murals we’ve seen since we’ve been in this cool, cool city:

I’ll post again once we’re clear and the odyssey can officially begin.

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29 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

Thanks to Barb and Steve Lewis. They really came through for us. What did they do, you may ask? I’ll tell you what they did. They brought a whole mess of Tim Horton’s to the gulag and bartered for our return.

After that, we were whisked off to dinner with the whole extended Lewis clan. Since Steve already has a brother named Mark and a brother named Mike, we became “Texas Mark” and “Texas Mike” for the duration. We got to crash one of their regular Sunday family get-togethers, and a nicer bunch of people I’ve never met.

We knew we had to work off the sizable Tim Horton’s bill, so Mike got busy in the kitchen making a batch of authentic Tex-Mex salsa and some Jalapeno poppers (wrapped with bacon and stuffed with chipotle cream cheese), while I entertained the family with wild stories of Texas. Barb had her own cooking agenda, which included grilled chicken, grilled salmon, salad, squash, sweet potatoes, green beans, and more. Everyone fell into the food and we all ate like shipwreaked sailors.

Mike’s salsa and poppers were a big hit; everyone enjoyed the poppers, and no one could stop eating the salsa. With the extended family over, we were a little intimidated, but we shouldn’t have worried. Everyone treated us like old friends, and it was a very relaxing evening filled with conversation and laughs.

After dinner, Steve showed me his art studio, and it was really impressive–filled with oil paintings and canvases and reference books. He’s got a self-sufficient set-up that allows him to work for extended periods without interruption. I really envy that. He also has among his books several George Bridgeman books, Andrew Loomis’ “Figure Drawing for all It’s Worth,” and Jules Feiffer’s “The Great Comic Book Heroes.” Geek alert! Steve’s one of us! He did animation work on the documentary “Comic Book Confidential.”

The evening ended with a round of well wishes, promises to come visit, and sincere fare-thee-wells for our upcoming endeavor. I have no doubt we’ll see them all again, somehow, some way. If we’re lucky, they will bring the super pugs.

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29 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

Hello, Jazz fans. Jackson here, with a quick update.

I just want everyone to know that I tried to stop them, but they just wouldn’t listen. Sure, I’m a moose, but I’m not exactly full sized, you know? Anyway, I was snoozing in the center seat, just minding my own business, when the guys hopped into the truck and started ‘er up.

“Hey, did you get your paperwork?” I asked.

“Um, not yet,” said Mark, not meeting my gaze.

“So, where are we going?” I asked Mike.

“Jackson, at this point, the less you know, the better.” Mike replied.

I felt something cold and hard settle in my stomach. This did not look good. The truck turned South, and for a few minutes, I thought we were just going to raid a few Tim Horton’s and buy up all of their crullers. Mark kinda has a sweet tooth. But after we zipped by three of them in a row, I knew something was up. “Okay, boys, what’s the plan here, exactly?”

Mike continued to drive and sing James McMurtry songs to himself, pretending he didn’t hear me. I turned to Mark. “What? Tell me or I start singing showtunes.”

“No! Not that!”

“OOOOOOOH-KLAAAAAAA-HOMA Where The WIND Goes Whistl–!”

“STOP!” Mark clapped a hand over my mouth. “I’ll tell you. Just…don’t do that.”

I folded my arms and waited for him to continue.

“We’re hopping the border.”
Continue

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29 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

It was terribly difficult to get up out of bed this morning, possibly because we were in agonizing pain from being crammed into a clown car for five hours and then moving approximately half a ton of records, tapes, and books until late in the evening the day before.

We ate breakfast across the street at this little diner that has been in operation for a thousand years or so. For six bucks, I got two fried eggs, three and a half strips of bacon, hash browns, two pieces of buttered toast, and a small coffee that could have melted a hole on the floor. It was glorious, and just what I needed to refuel and restore for the second day of loading.

Barb came back out to help us, along with husband Steve, and we knocked everything out in a little over two hours. Forty years of collecting, literally a person’s life’s work, and it all fit into the back of a U haul truck. It was a little humbling, but also a little exciting, in that we’d get to present this person’s work to a much larger audience. And I’m finally making good on the promise I made Joe, on his deathbed, about bringing the collection home to Vernon.

Once everything was loaded, I called the importers, who have been helping us this past week with the mountain of paperwork necessary to move the collection over the border. Bad news: the paperwork isn’t done. The earliest we’re going to get it now is Monday. This was unexpected, but not necessarily unplanned for. Mike and I got on the phone and started playing defense back in Vernon. After packing Pat and Diane off to the airport, we were left with most of a day and nothing to do. The solution: park the truck and take in the town.

Parking at Barb’s house was surprisingly simple, because Mike is a truck driving demigod. While he and Steve discussed a possible remodeling project involving their back porch and deck, I got some quality time with the Lewis’ pugs, Maybelle and Ripley.

Of course, this made me miss my dog, so I called Cathy and asked to speak to Sonya. Because I’m that guy.

Barb drove us around on a brief tour of some of the more picturesque parts of Toronto, including the site of her brother Joe’s former apartment. We also found a few junk shops, and thus deepening my attraction to this marvelous city. Barb finally dropped us off at a place called Smoke’s Poutinerie. Look it up. It’s apparently a Canadian classic, and this place did not disappoint.

Poutine (pronounced “Poo-Teen”) is a Canadian delicacy by way of Quebec, no fooling. Basically, it breaks down thusly: a layer of fresh fried potatoes (fries), covered with cheese curds, and then smothered with rich brown gravy. Did your heart just give an irregular beat? I’ll bet it did. The large portion comes with a defibrillator. They’ve got a “Buy Five, get a free Bypass!” program that’s really working for them. But my god, is the food delicious.

I could hear my wife’s disapproval all the way back in Texas. I felt it, like Spidey Sense. I tried to explain to her over the phone that, like the paper trail delay, it’s not my fault, but she wasn’t buying it.

We spent the rest of the day exploring Chinatown and the surrounding neighborhoods. The goal now is to rest up and get to feeling better so that when we can leave, we can do so quickly and speedily.

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27 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

GUEST POST BY JACKSON, the Teagarden Museum Mascot!

Hello, friends. Mark asked me to type this installment because he can’t move his fingers right now. He and Mike are kinda tired, and I can’t say as I blame them. They only drove an hour and a half to Buffalo, NY and back, crossing the border each time, just to pick up the big ol’ U-haul…but I’m getting ahead of the story.

This is where the gang ate breakfast today. It’s just around the corner from the IKEA–I mean, the hotel, and it’s one of those places that’s been in operation since the 1920s. Toronto has a LOT of those places; little lunch counters, with really reasonable prices and great food. Bonus: Not one of them serves moose burgers. Whew!

After breakfast, the gang of four squeezed into their rented clown car and beat feet for Buffalo, NY. They had to pick up the truck there because there wasn’t one in the size they needed anywhere in Toronto. As it was, Buffalo was a pleasant diversion, and it’s a shame they didn’t get to explore it further. It was very picturesque.

What Buffalo lacked in convenience for my guys, it made up for in charm. Mark said the next time he was in the area, he was going to go exploring in Buffalo. Of course, he saw a used bookstore that they didn’t have time to investigate, so that probably added to the allure of the town, right there.

After a quick lunch (well, as quick as Buffalo allowed), they hopped back over the border and met Barb at the storage place. This is where the Joe Showler collection has lingered, in limbo, since 2009. Opening the door felt a lot like Indiana Jones discovering the ark of the covenant…only, you know, without the face melting and the explosions.

The rest of the evening was spent re-organizing the collection and carefully loading the fragile items into the truck in such a way that they would be protected. Barbara was a trooper, helping with toting and lifting as well as fetching rope and tape…and also coffee and donuts. A lifesaver, she is.

Loading will resume tomorrow. Another three or four hours’ worth. After that, the guys will rest up and then get a fresh start early Sunday morning. Wish them luck, won’t you?

Now, if you’ll excuse me, Mark has a blister on his foot the size of a yam, and he’s asked me to tend to it. A moose’s work is never done.

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26 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

I woke up in the strange and sterile hotel room and went to perform my morning ablutions. This is what greeted me:

I still think I’m staying in an IKEA. There’s no one to help me, and my door key is an Allan Wrench.

I had to make a lot of telephone arrangements today (an activity that is bleeding over to tomorrow). Since the only must-do on the itinerary was dinner with Barb and her family (the late Joe Showler’s sister), I took it upon myself to make use of the third largest public transit system in North America and do a little book hunting. Mike decided to tag along, despite his still-tender sprained ankle. What a trooper! So we ate a great breakfast at the greasy spoon across from the hotel and hopped on the light rail.

This town is really starting to grow on me. Thousands of little dives and places to eat that don’t break the bank, a hugely diverse set of neighborhoods playing host to every nationality, great shops and little places to explore, and all of it easily accessible via public transportation. Lovely. Just lovely. I can see why this is the arts and Bohemian capital of Canada.

We didn’t even make it to The Monkey’s Paw (and how cool is THAT for a bookstore’s name?), so we’ll try to cover it on Saturday, before we leave. But we did hit up BMV books (thanks to Jay for the suggestion), where I found two books that I simply HAD to have within thirty seconds of entering the store. Dangerous place, man. Dangerous.

Mike and I made it back in time to meet up with Pat and Diane, and we all trucked out to one of the quaint, picturesque neighborhoods that I associate with Toronto. The “typical” house seems to be a two story townhouse-style house, with a finished basement and a deceptively deep back end that either terminates in a small yard like a dog run, or a patio porch that drops off into a ravine. It’s a cool style, in that the house resembles a walk-up flat, but actually has tons of room inside. These are the houses that people are always fixing up on those real estate shows that dominate HG TV.

The first time we met Joe’s sister, Barbara, they were under heightened circumstances, obviously. We certainly didn’t realize how close to the end Joe’s time was, and it was just such a jarring shock when we heard of his passing, literally a day after we returned to the states. In the intervening years, she and I have gotten to know one another a little better as we busied ourselves with separate ends of this lengthy project. But this was the first time we were able to sit down and just visit about what-have-you, and it was really wonderful.

Barb and Steve met in Italy when they were both studying art. Pat and Diane had visited Italy several times, and so stories were swapped, as we were treated to a homestyle pasta dish that they discovered while over there. Steve is an amazing artist who worked as an animator and so we had some very art-nerd discussions on our end of the table. They also served us Moosehead beer. I love Moosehead beer.

Barb, her husband Steve, and their daughter Erin made us feel very welcome and they treated us to a wonderful meal, great conversation, and much laughter and cross talk. Afterwards, we signed papers and passed keys and checks back and forth, and that was that. Such a simple transaction, but oh so many years in the making. It was almost anti-climactic, really. But it’ll all be real tomorrow. That’s when we load the truck.

And lest I forget: Barb also gifted me a moose. I had real trouble finding one the last time I was here. So, I’m one moose up on the deal. And we’ve got a totem animal for the trip back. Thanks, Barb!

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25 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

I knew this was going to be a long day. We basically traversed the country, flying right over lunch hour, and then it was a two-hour odyssey to the hotel, creeping along the 401 and the 404.

We’re staying at the Bond Place, a downtown, swanky hotel that has ZERO sense of humor. I asked for the Goldfinger Suite and they just stared at me. Maybe that means something else to Canadians than it does to Ian Fleming fans.

This place is an Ikea catalog come to life. I’m afraid to touch anything. Tomorrow we have some logistics to take care of, so everyone is taking it easy tonight. I may just order a pizza. With shrimp on it. Yeah, they do that in Canada.

Oh, and I figured out what’s wrong with my cell phone. I have NO data capabilities here, because there’s no Canadian carrier that recognizes US Cellular’s authoritah. So I’ll be uploading the old fashioned way, at night, until we get on the road. I hope you’ll all be patient as we struggle through our technological limitations.

Everyone keep thinking good thoughts. I’ll have some more to talk about, and some more pics, tomorrow.

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25 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

But my technology doesn’t want to cooperate with Toronto. I’ll try to figure it out and post some pics. We’ll be picking up the truck on Friday. I’m so freaking excited–I can’t believe this day is finally here!

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22 April 2012 | Uncategorized | mark

Yep. We’re heading to Toronto next week to load up and relocate the Joe Showler collection. And you can follow our progress, as I will be blogging daily to let everyone know where we are. Subscribe to our feed and stay tuned for more updates!

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