Dual mileage with St. Catharines transit

Posted on November 25, 2010

The latest of my pieces in The Standard came out today, so I’m using it as a kind of post while trying to get back into the blogging habit.

Transiting St. Catharines

Can you tell this is the logo for the St. Catharines Transit? Not easy, is it? Not that it matters -- it doesn't appear on the bus stop signs anyway.

One of the hardest things about moving to St. Catharines was finding our way around. No matter where we wanted to go, we always ended up passing Lock 3, the Farmer’s Market and a billboard for “Delicious Dirt.”

In the end, we’d wind up on Lake St.

Of course, some of this disorientation can be attributed to our unfamiliarity with a new city.

But I can’t help thinking that east/west streets running the same basic direction as the north/ south streets and a complete lack of 90-degree intersections were contributing factors. [More…]

Posted in: Section E: Published Articles

11 Responses “Dual mileage with St. Catharines transit” →

00dozo

November 26, 2010

I thought I would comment here and leave your article discussion to the locals (since I am not one).

I moved from Toronto to a small hamlet south-east of Hamilton and worked in Stoney Creek for a time. Public transportation was out of the question for me, as was a compass – everything was sideways or backwards. Living on the south side of Lake Ontario messes with one’s sense of direction especially when they tell you to go “up the mountain”. “Up” to me means going north, not south. And I got lost in Hamilton all of the time. No worries: if I ever got that lost I could always find a Tim Horton’s and ask directions. ;-)

(If you ever visit Hamilton and are driving, beware of the one-way streets, particularly those that go up or down the “mountain” at particular times of the day.)

I’ve been to St. Catharine’s twice, both times with a blind navigator (she forgot her glasses – both times) and, yeah, I think we did end up on Lake St. on both occasions.

Now, I haven’t ridden the Red Rocket in many years, but I must say public transportation is the best way to go when it is available. I’m rather surprised, though, of the modifications to the auto-door system to the rear exit. I’ve been ‘bitten’ by those doors, but never slapped in the face.

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00dozo

November 26, 2010

P.S. This and your “Niagara” article were great!

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Frank Lee MeiDere

November 26, 2010

Now where did you find that? I couldn’t.

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00dozo

November 26, 2010

I’d have to say that the Standard’s search engine – as Nicky would say – sucks monster moose cocks. Really, it does.

You can still find it – go to the website homepage, click on the “News” pull down menu, then click on “Editorial”. As of today, you’ll have to scroll over (or click) to page 15.

There it be. ;-)

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Frank Lee MeiDere

November 26, 2010

Well, the more comments on the newspaper site the better, I hope. It might convince them that people are actually reading my articles. (I can’t say I care for Jimmy in Waiting’s self-righteous “I used to walk ten miles after getting drunk” shtick.)

Hamilton is, I believe, possibly even worse than St. Catharines — or maybe it only seems that way because of the one-way streets. Of course, none of that matters any more since both cities are essentially boarded-up shells. Sad.

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00dozo

November 26, 2010

At least you are getting feedback from the people who can actually read – always a hopeful outlook, despite Jimmy. ;-)

I can’t really speak to the transportation issue since, like I said, it wasn’t an option for me (but I loved those “snow days”). Heh, heh.

Hamilton – good ol’ Steeltown. Two of the best things things I remember of it was a pizza joint and a butcher. If it’s still around (and I hope it’s still as good as it was) was Highland Packers (the butcher) on Hwy 20 (yes, on the ‘mountain’). They used to have the best chicken Cordon Bleu very reasonably priced. (Can you tell that I miss Canada??)

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Leeuna Foster

November 26, 2010

Loved the article, Frank. (But now that I know your real name, I still can’t think of you as anyone but Frank) It appears that a lot of local people are enjoying it as well, judging from all the comments. Thanks for posting the link here so that we (your friends across the pond) can read it too. Keep up the good work. I’m happy for you.

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Frank Lee MeiDere

November 26, 2010

Thanks, Leeuna. But I have to say: “across the pond”? What route would you take to get to Toronto?

As for my name, I think I’ve actually become this persona. There’s a chap I met on Bitstrips (where I make the Sunday Comics) who lives in Toronto. This week we finally got around to meeting for a beer at the Artful Dodger pub. At one point I got up to have a cigarette and he said, “Oh, Frank.” I turned without even thinking, just as though it was the name I’d been born with.

On the plus side, I no longer have to preface any remark with, “Let me frank.” I already am.

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