This is where it all begins – again. I told the daughter, LadyRyl, that I wanted to get some lollipops for Cordelia, and her Mom. I envisioned a couple of the big, patterned, disc-shaped, sugar-type suckers, and a bouquet of the smaller, ball-type, suitable for making porn with. Smarter than her Dad, Ryl suggested that nothing says Canadian, like Maple Sugar, and I should take along Maple lollipops to the American ladies.
I recently saw an article on MSN.ca, which listed The Five Farmers’ Markets in Canada, which you just shouldn’t miss. One was the Jean Talon Market in Montreal. Another was in Vancouver. The third one listed was the St. Jacob’s Market, actually located at the northern edge of Waterloo, ON., our Twin City.
Say Hello to my little Maple – anything you want. So, off to the market we went, to get some Maple lollipops. The above picture, and the right-hand one below, is of the original, 30-year-old market building. It was made of BC Douglas Fir – but before fire sprinklers became mandatory. Last Labor Day it burned to the ground. They still have not determined the cause.
Management quickly assembled a canvas-clad Quonset-hut type building, and began plans for a modern, safe building, elsewhere on the site. Totally uninteresting from the outside, here are some crowd shots, some from the outdoor, vegetable sales area, and a couple from the crowded interior. Note the 20-foot, helicopter-rotor ceiling fans.
If you want Maple anything, especially lollipops, this is the man to see. New-Order Mennonites, Edgar and Irene Gingrich own a nearby Maple woodlot. Two or three days a week, depending on the season, he is at the market, as well as making farm-gate sales, and distributing to local stores. The world map on the left of the photo is for people to put pins in, to indicate their home towns.
This sucker bought his American-bound suckers, elbowed a couple of gawking tourists out of the way, and escaped the rush, now (more or less) ready for the trip. Here’s a couple of shots, proving how sweet Canucks can be. I hope the ladies agree. Stop back to find out. Coming soon to a website near you – Star Drek, Episode Two – The Wrath of Archon.
As you can see, I’m taking and posting more photos with my little digital camera. The first digital camera we owned could only take and hold 8 photos, until you bought and installed a chip which allowed it to hold another 64. I knew that there were a bunch of shots on the camera, the last of which the wife downloaded for this post.
I wondered if we (she) should eliminate most/all, to give me room to take lots of pictures during this trip. I must remember to take batteries, but I did not want to run out of space. The wife just pointed to the monitor screen. There were 79 pics on the camera, but that only took 3% of the space. Ain’t technology grand??!
Archon's Den 