ON B.C.’s CRAZY MIXED UP DRIVERS, VIETNAMESE SOUP AND UGLY L.A.
In this edition of the Reader, your ever-vigilant correspondent considers the hazards of modern toasters and driving in B.C., celebrates National Delivery Driver Appreciation Day with gusto, and tells everyone to get out of the pool.
This week: a 4-minute read
WHEN LEFT WAS RIGHT
As a tasty follow-up to our piece about the driving chaos in Sweden (Aug. 4) alert reader David Mailloux from Nanaimo, B.C., writes that there was once a time when it was legal in British Columbia to drive both sides of the road at the same time. And no, he is not making this up. Moreover we checked his sources and they are impeccable.
David first heard the story when he was working for the B.C. Ministry of Tourism during Expo 86. It seems that at the turn of the last century and for a couple of decades afterward, motorists in B.C. communities on the eastern slopes of the Rockies drove on the right side like their counterparts in much of the rest of Canada and the U.S., while motorists west of the Rockies, still heavily influenced by the English, drove on the left. How did that work out? Well, not too bad. For the most parts, roads west of the Rockies were not linked to roads in the east. Highways transversing the Crowsnest Pass, Kicking Horse Pass and Yellowhead Pass had not yet been built.
Then came January 1, 1922, when the switch to the right came for the Okanagan, Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Evidently there was not much fuss about it. Folks exhibited that most Canadian of traits: doing as they were told.
OLD JOKE
How do you get 50 Canadians out of a pool?
“Hey, everybody, get out of the pool!”
MORE ‘DEAR TERRY’ LETTERS
Re motorists in Sweden switching from left to right. Fascinating, Terry, your tidbit about Sweden and its Dagen H experience with cars. I once wrote a short story about a woman who decided to buy a car with the steering wheel on the right. It didn’t end well for her. Claudio D’Andrea, Windsor, Ontario
Re JD Vance’s remarks about how cheap knockoff toasters are not worth the price of one American manufacturing job. Hey Terry, every year four or five people die from a shark attack while toaster fires and electrocutions kill more than 700 people. Lorne Eedy, St. Marys, Ontario
Re subscribing to My Sunday Reader. You're one of my favourite writers, Terry. I'm happy to subscribe. Ted Misselbrook, Croton, Ontario
I’m looking forward to reading your column, Terry. The original Sunday Reader is sorely missed. John Lucas, Edmonton, Alberta
If you want to drop me a note (and risk me publishing it here), just reply to this email or, if you prefer, send it to mysundayreader@gmail.com.
WHAT DID YOU SAY?
My wife Vicki has always been an early adopter. Usually that means someone is quick to accept and utilize new technology, which certainly describes her. Yet Vicki brings the same sensibilities to the kitchen, where she is eager to bake, cook, roast, sizzle, simmer or brew whatever dish catches her fancy.
Her latest fascination? The Vietnamese soup dish known as Pho (pronounced “fa”). The problem, you ask? How does one walk into a grocery store and ask for a “pho kit”?
NEWS YOU CAN’T USE
Just so you know, today is International Delivery Driver Appreciation Day; National Couples Day; National Ice Cream Pie Day; National Pinot Noir Day; and National Fajita Day. I bet they teach this stuff in the first three days of Public Relations 101.
BLAST FROM FACEBOOK’S PAST
“Carly Rae Jepson played the Ex in Edmonton tonight. Judging from the photos I saw, she looked tired … maybe.”
THIS WEEK'S SHAMELESS PLUG
It’s my book ‘Lethbridge: A Tale of Love in a Time of War’ again, but this time it’s the audiobook, narrated by a fine actor we hired from the north of England. It’s on sale for just $9.95 Cdn, through terrymcconnell.com. As I wrote before, it’s a fine deal and I believe an even finer read. Or rather, a finer listen. A sampling is here. In it, Pte. Harry Walker, still reeling from the shock of his best friend's death two days before, gets a letter from home. His spirits are momentarily lifted, until he learns it’s more bad news. I respectfully ask for your consideration.
OUCH!
“L.A. is too ugly now to host the Olympics”
Headline in the Los Angeles Times post-Paris
AND FINALLY …
Speaking of the Paris Olympics, check out this delightful column from my L.A. friend Jaron Summers https://jaronsummers.com/three-miracles-of-france/
