The Walk
Posted on March 8, 2007
Filed Under Uncategorized |
Last night, after coffee, I went for a long walk. I headed north, toward Kingsway and the City Centre Airport. It was a chilly night, but good for walking. There were few other people out, so I got so much need solitude and mediation time. Cigar in hand, I trekked through the residential area along 116th Street. The tree-lined streets lost some of their charm, outside of the car. Slippery footing and a cold wind killed a bit of the magic. A barking dog and a red couple of red-lit rooms brought it back.
Somewhere along the way, I walked past someone’s side gate. The bowser in the backyard spotted, and ran up to the gate. Some people would be intimidated, having a big Rottweiler bellow at them. In other circumstances, I might have been. Last night, however, I felt happy. The bark of that dog reminded me of all the good that can come of pets. Man’s best friend, indeed. I miss having animals around. Even other peoples’ animals can be nice to have around once in a while but, in a pet-free building, that’s hard to come by. Given that most of downtown Edmonton is pet-free (whether apartments or condos), it’s rare to spot a canine in the area.[1]
The street seemed lonely, that big dog and I being the only ones out on a cold March night, but the warmth of the colour red emanated from more than one window on my journey. One, a white light appeared red through the curtains. The other, from where I stood, appeared to by a Buddhist shrine. There was a real sense of life in those homes, as well as the few homes with open windows, where people could be seen living there lives.
In the midst of this life, was me, on the outside looking in. Puffing away on a fairly bitter tasting cigar, and thinking about the future.[2]
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[1] On a related note, I just checked out the Humane Society website and was dismayed to see that they have an entire litter of German Shepherd/Boxer-cross puppies at the moment. If I were in a situation that were dog-friendly, I would certainly be on my way to adopting one of those guys.
[2] In it’s defence, the poor taste may have been partially my fault. I never did manage to get an even burn going, and because of both the wind, and my own carelessness, I had to relight it several times. I suspect that these two factors may have significantly added to the bitter, ashy taste I experienced. I would be willing to try this particular type of cigar again; under different circumstances, I think it has the potential to be quite enjoyable. Similarly, the Thomas Hinds Nicaraguan that gave me the shakes last week was actually very good. Despite the bad experience, I will certainly try another at some point in the near future.
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3 Responses to “The Walk”
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[...] Original post by Ink Slinger March 08th 2007 Posted to 7 Cigars [...]
Adam,
The “refresh” technique is simple, and likely would have helped this cigar. You need a lighter, (not a Zippo)…butane, or any other clean-burn lighter…You hold the end of the flame to the end of the cigar, take a deep breath and blow out through the cigar. Sounds stupid, I know, but it actually works — evens out the smoke, eliminates bitterness, redistributes nicotine so that it’s not so intense. Try it.
t
So bloody simple. Had I known, I’d likely have tried it on Tuesday night. And, now that you mention it, I have heard that before. Thanks for refreshing my memory.
Tonight: a press full of dark roast and a flavourful stogy on the patio. Commentary to follow.