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Bacon, world peace, and chats with strangers

(Note: This post was written by Laurel Regan and originally published in a separate blog called “Why Windsor…”, which was later merged with Alphabet Salad.)

One of the nicest ways to spend time on the weekend, I think, involves enjoying a) spending time with good company, b) a late breakfast at a cosy diner (which must include bacon and plenty of strong, hot coffee!), and c) a long, leisurely walk outside in the fresh air and sunshine.

Today was just such a day.

breakfast (2)Around noon, my husband and I headed to one of our favourite Windsor eating places – Deb’s Diner on Ottawa Street – where for somewhere around $7.00 per person you can enjoy a yummy full breakfast (with bacon if you so desire… and really, who wouldn’t?!), lots of great coffee, and, if you’re lucky, some sass from Deb herself. The place was buzzing with plenty of fun and laughter, so we ended up lingering over our coffee for quite some time as we enjoyed being a part of it all.

Before we left we picked up a bag of Deb’s homemade “My Chips” to sample later in the afternoon, and oh my. I’d never tried them before, but I most certainly will again! They were crisp and lightly salted, not too greasy, and so very, very tasty… next time you’re at Deb’s Diner, please do yourself a favour and try some… they’re wonderful!

Afterwards we stopped at Reaume Park on Riverside Drive, where we enjoyed what had to be the most gorgeous sunny February afternoon ever. Once again I’m baffled by Windsor‘s “winter” (although I’ve been told that this year it’s been exceptionally mild), but I’m definitely not complaining!

I didn’t have a decent camera with me, but I did have my phone and was able to take a picture of the Peace Fountain monument so I could capture some words that affected me.

Peace Fountain Monument(Clicking on the picture will take you to Flickr)

In case this picture is too small for you to read, here’s what it says:

“PEACE FOUNTAIN”
Named in memory of CHARLES E. BROOKS
President of UAW Local 444 – died January 17, 1977

Charles Brooks was both an outstanding trade union leader and community-minded citizen.

Among his many public-spirited interests was a keen desire for environmental improvement. He consistently supported every effort towards the creation of riverfront parks and in particular, this beautiful fountain. In addition, Charles Brooks was dedicated to the cause of world peace.

He firmly believed that trade unionists and all men and women of good-will should strive ceaselessly toward the abolition of war. Thus this magnificent water display is appropriately named Peace Fountain in his memory.

Charles E. Brooks sounds like my kind of person.

I wish I could have taken a picture of the floating Peace Fountain itself, but as we discovered in a later conversation (see below!), apparently it’s put into storage during the winter months because of ice buildup in the river. I can, however, link you to a great photo with writeup on Info Windsor. (Actually, now that I see the photo, I do believe I remember seeing the fountain in operation when we first came to Windsor on our house-hunting trip!)

As we stopped at the monument so that I could take the picture, we were approached by a woman who at first thought I was someone else, and with whom we ended up having a lovely 20-minute conversation. This is a typical example of the Windsorites we continue to meet time and time again – so incredibly friendly, chatty, down-to-earth, and approachable. And it’s not just because we’re newcomers and they’re trying to make a good impression, either – most of the time we’re well into our conversation before they find out that we’re not long-time Windsorites.

The longer I live in Windsor, the more I love it… the place, the people, the weather, everything. So glad to be here!

Laurel Storey, CZT – Certified Zentangle Teacher. Writer, reader, tangler, iPhoneographer, cat herder, learner of French and Italian, crocheter, needle felter, on-and-off politics junkie, 80s music trivia freak, ongoing work in progress.