A Taste Of Quebec

I'm in Montreal right now.

We spent the night at The Man's cousin's in Hatley, an hour and a half outside of Montreal. Every time I go into one of these small towns, I think, Why am I not living in one. For one thing, when you drive around the bend, you see rolling hills and lush fields. In her one-acre backyard last night, golden finches were singing in the trees. She lives in a century old home and has decorated the place with old country furniture. You know, the kind of furniture you see in souvenir shops that look so charming and you wonder where you would put the piece in your house if you bought it. She's pulled that look together.

The cousin also owns a loft in Montreal, where we're staying till Monday. It is a beautifully designed and furnished place. Little wonder. She used to be an interior decorator.

I would make a poor tourist guide. We've been to Montreal before, yet I have no recollection of how the streets work and where things are. I see lots of construction in Old Montreal and directed The Man to drive the wrong way down a one way street until a bunch of people yelled, Hey wrong way. The Boy took the map from me after that. But I did get the map back from him later and put my eyeglasses on. And you know, everything looked so much clearer with no need to strain or squint at all.

We're gathering our wits at an internet cafe right now and devising a plan to take in more of Montreal.