Water Main Breaks in Downtown Edmonton

It's been really hot the last few days here in Edmonton. It got so bad that I decided to head to the "break room" in the basement of my apartment building. While my apartment doesn't get disgustingly hot most of the time, I decided the cool off as best as I could with my iPod blazing.

I lazed for nearly an hour before one of the locals came in to check to see if the water was turned off. (The room has a sink and two bathrooms.) It turns out that a water main had broken and that 116 Street was flooded from Jasper Avenue to near my building.

Well, I decided to go to check it out since I was bored silly anyway. The flooding was very severe and the situation got tense as several nearby apartment buildings (not mine) were threatened by the rising water. From my vantage point, I couldn't tell if the water was seriously threatening The Druid, a popular downtown Edmonton nightspot.

I took a few photos with my digital camera but I didn't try to get that perfect shot. It was too fucking hot out.

The situation seems to be under control now. The water has drained away as the city quickly moved to fix the problem.

It just goes to prove that if you blink that you could miss an event going on right outside your home.

I Did It Again

I completely forgot to update this thing. I've got to start trying harder, especially since my one night class is now over. (I got an A.) I won't be taking any more night classes until September. The funding I get is limited to $2000 a year, so I'm stuck in limbo for the summer.

I'm toying with the idea of doing volunteer work, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet. I hope I am.

I'm also considering my options for getting back into the pool. The pool in my building is now permanently closed, so I'm going to have to pick one of the city pools to use. The Kinsmen is the obvious choice but it isn't easy for me to get to.

Plus, I have to consider the noise factor.

I don't do well exposed to tons of people crowded into one area. Thus, the idea of going to a public pool kind of freaks me out. The pool at MacEwan might be a better option; although, it is going to cost me if I go there.

That's what's great about the city pools. They're free if you are on AlbertaWorks assistance. Still, I'm not sure that a city pool is right for me.

Anyway, what else is new you ask?

Well, I'm in the middle of running an online PbP campaign set in my World of Kulan campaign setting. The adventure is based on the DCC module called Aerie of the Crow God. I'm running the game on EN World's messageboards, and it's just begun. PbP campaigning is definitely different than playing in person. It takes longer but it's more flexible.

I haven't done much personal writing over the last few months and my night class (Mac Skills for Writers) wasn't a true writing class, so I didn't get to flex my writing muscles as part of the class. Still, I learned a lot about the latest Mac OS and several Adobe products, so it is all good! Heh.

I miss chatting with my classmates. The class was good for honing my poor interaction skills. The instructor knew how to make the class fun while teaching. Still, some of it was too easy. Mac Skills was a good class filled with good people. Fun and informative.

Hopefully I'll be able to renew acquantances with my peers in September. I saw one of them in a mall downtown but I don't think she saw me or recognized me. Either that or she simply decided to ignore me.

Anyway, I've been hanging out at the Wee Book Inns a lot lately. I usually don't have much money to buy books there or at other book stores but it's a good way to kill some time. Still, maybe I should try hanging out at the downtown city library instead. At least it would be air conditioned. Heh.

Man, I'm going to be 37 soon. July 18 is coming up fast. Another birthday, another year of family, friends, and even a few foes. I take solace in my peers and try to avoid the crazies out there.

Well, that's it for now.