Tomorrow morning, 7am, I am hopping on a flight to San Francisco. A week-long meditation retreat awaits me, kicked off by an adventure in Big Sur with my HLP. I am excited!

I'm gonna de-activate Facebook while I'm gone. An exercise in non-being? An experiment in detachment? We'll see!

I just became the person I used to disparage.

I just called a California phone number, to inquire about making accommodation reservations, without even stopping to consider that it was 7:30 in the morning on the west coast. Someone at this small lodge answered the phone and told me I would have to call back after 8am.

So, there's the definitive answer, I guess. In case you were wondering, apparently it takes six months in Toronto in order for the belief that you ARE the centre of the universe, and the world revolves around you, to really take hold.

Just two of the things I might mention here....

Because yes, I went out for Dim Sum this morning, with a fine crew of folks. My stomach still has not recovered from all the grease, and all the weird things. But it sure was tasty! E-pan, just south of College on Spadina. Highly recommended.

And yes, I am still riding my bike, even though it is hovering right around freezing. It's actually not too bad, as long as it's dry. Cover the ears (essential) and wear a warm pair of gloves and it's all good. I must say that if it gets much colder than this, though, I might start to want a balaclava, and that might be where I draw the line. We'll see. On the plus side: It's easier to find bike parking these days, that's for sure.

Oh, in related news... I found a lost Metropass yesterday, at a coffee shop. I brought it back over to where my friend was sitting, and together we debated this ethical dilemma. See, a Metropass is worth $100 – but the month is half over, and I am still trying to ride my bike. Over the next two weeks, though, before I leave town, I will likely spend at least $20 on transit. And even if I did turn the thing in to the coffee shop staff, what's to say that the rightful owner even knew where they had lost it? In the end though, we agreed that good karma is worth way more than $20, so turn it in I did. The barista seemed surprised at my decision. ;) 

I am really not quite sure where half of Canada's official summer has gone... but July came and went in the blink of an eye. Plenty happened, but little (or apparently none) of it felt very bloggable, so there you go.

I fly back to BC on Thursday for 4 weeks, to attend 2 weddings and also to enjoy a whole lot of islands and nature. I'm excited, but also a bit sorry to be missing so much of the summer in my new adopted province. September will be hectic and then the weather will start getting shitty, so my chances of exploring more of lake-land seem slim. Not that I will likely be complaining much as I wander through forests and along beaches out on the west coast. ...

I guess there's always next year for Ontario exploring? Who knows. Not I, I can tell you that much...

Yesterday, someone asked me how I was finding cycling in Toronto.

"Oh, it's great!" I gushed. "I love it. Toronto is so great on a bike."

But how are you finding the awful Toronto drivers? they wanted to know. And I was actually taken aback.

"I haven't really found them bad at all," I said. I didn't really know what he was referring to.

Well naturally I jinxed myself, and today I am enraged at Toronto drivers. Without going into ranting details that will bore anyone but me, I will say that I *screamed* at a driver for the first time in my 8-year cycling career today, and also had a terrible experience while trying to make a legal left-hand turn at a busy street. Apparently the only thing more enraging (far more, it would seem) than a car holding up traffic to turn left... is a cyclist. 

Which leads me to my next point. A reader a while back commented on my "Google Bikemaps Please" post (via email) and said:

As a long time bike commuter, the safest thing you can
do on a bike is act like a car. If the map gives you
car directions, you should follow them for the most
part.

Right now, in this moment, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say... fuck that. You know why? Because I realized tonight that I exist with a constant state of low-level fear in me, every time I ride on a busy road. Every time I hear a car coming up behind me, my nervous system reacts. It's often subtle, but it's pervasive, and it sucks. It sucks to fear for your life while you're trying to do the right thing. 

The air in this city is bad. Truly, it is. And it's not hard to understand why, once you know just how many people live out in the suburbs, and drive into town every day. And once you know that lots of the pollution from south of the border blows up this way (Ohio coal plants, apparently). All it takes is one good smog day, and you get it. Ew.

At the same time, as I blogged recently, cycling is pretty much the best way to get around. It's cheap, it's fast, and you get to know that you aren't part of the air pollution problem. However, it's also a great way to increase your suffering because of it.

I didn't want to be one of those people riding around with a filter mask on, but after less than a month here, I broke down and bought one today. It just seemed like the smart thing to do. I came down with some sort of cold last week, and the irritation in my throat just made me all the more aware of how yucky the air is. And when I was walking up from the subway this afternoon, and wanted to take a deep breath to centre myself, and realized that I was *afraid* to breathe deeply... well, I headed on over to MEC and bought myself my very own black mask.

I'll report back on how it helps...

For those of you in Toronto, or for those who might pass through this summer... I just thought I'd let you know that I'll be teaching a lunch-hour yoga class, every Friday, at the Union Yoga Centre in lovely Cabbagetown.

It's Friday at 12:30, and open to anyone. And only $6!

The Union is a lovely new space, with a mission to offer affordable yoga in a non-intimidating class environment. There are lots of classes every day so check it out!