My Girlfriend's Day

My Charlene was downtown and met an acquaintance while waiting for a bus. As luck would have it, Germaine, the acquaintance, was waiting for a friend, of a friend, of her son's to pick her up, and offered Charlene a lift home. Ahhh, to be in the right place at the right time. How fortunate! Two boys in a car pulled up to the bus stop and the ladies got in.

A few blocks from home the cops tried to pull the car over some reason. What does the kid do? He floors it and starts driving like a maniac, informing the ladies in the back seat the vehicle wasn't his and he wasn't going back to jail.

Apparently it was a car chase that beat out some of the stuff you see on "Caught on Video" It was dramatic enough that the take down made the front page of the local paper. The ladies were scared shitless!.

The four of them were arrested, at gun point, and carted off to the slammer. After being cleared and released, Charlene told me how close this kid had come to running over and hurting innocent people. He had absolutley no regard for his, and others' safety.

Making the front page, having a gun pointed at your head, and spending a few hours in jail are things we can laugh about now, because only Charlene's pride was hurt. What was that about not accepting rides from strangers? Ha ha ha! That'll teach her.

This story could easily have had a very tragic end. I've been trying to forget this incident for some time. Unfortuately it took a death on a highway, involving a stolen car, to remind me of the deadly consequences irresponsible hoodlums cause with their total disregard for law and order.

Off the Beaten Path

My fellow ghost tracking buddies and I spent our Saturday night in the woods, beside a railway track. We were waiting for a headless, lantern carrying ghost to make an appearance in this secluded spot, over a hundred clicks from the city.

According to the legend, since the 1930s, ghost lights and a phantom, holding an old gas lantern are said to have been seen numerous times near the railroad tracks in Woodridge, Manitoba. Hunters in the area who've seen the apparition with the lantern report that their brave hunting dogs run and cower at the sight of what their owners have to conclude is a ghost.

When seen, the ghost light is reported to appear only faintly, but as it gets closer it gets steadily stronger and even goes through color changes before becoming blindingly brilliant. Meanwhile, the ghost carrying the lantern may cause your car to temporarily stall. The ghost may also chase after you. Some people claim that the lights often appear in conjunction with the sound of an approaching train. Because the sightings were so close to the railway tracks, the guess is the ghost is a rail-riding hobo from the 1930s.

A "camp" was set up and my group began to wait for the ghost to make its appearance. As the sun dropped below the horizon, we watched and waited. Sometime after midnight with nothing happening, six of us decided to go and hunt this ghost down.

We started walking down the middle of the railway tracks. About 500 meters down the track, we noticed a glow in the trees ahead of us. Suddenly there it was! A train, travelling at full speed, rounded the bend and headed right for us. We had about a minute, if that, to scramble down into the bushes before it zipped by us.

When we got back onto the track to continue, we noticed a light shining behind us. We turned around and walked towards it. It seemed to approach us rapidly, and then began recede as we neared it. Back at the "camp" we found out it was a group member shining his portable headlamp down the tracks, wondering if we were still alive after the train went by. Finally at 1:30 am we decided to pack up and head for home.

We didn't see the ghost that night, and that is a frustration which plagues our off beat hobby of ghost tracking. Things don't always happen when you want them to. Neither could we say if the stories are hoaxes. According to legend, this eerie phenomenon does occur. We had an enjoyable time just anticipating it's arrival. My girlfriend thinks we should all be institutionalized, but there is always next time.

Pictures of the entire outing are on our group's web site, Shadows of Manitoba

The Saga Ends

Bride and Groom on the Beach

Our only daughter is getting on with her life as a Mrs, now that the final episode in their month long wedding has played out. The reception dinner was held last week. Its main purpose being that we could all meet our new extended family. My ex and I were the proud parents of the bride, although we did sit at different tables throughout the dinner. How's this family thing supposed to work anyway? She's not part of my family anymore, but she is my daughter's mother.

There were the usual things that had to be done before an event such as this unfolds. My ex asked me to take her shopping for the cold cuts, so I did. We then proceeded to her residence so the meat could be refrigerated. Sabrina and Sheldon were staying with her for the weekend, and we had a nice little "original family" visit. I might add, my ex lives alone now that her fourth relationship, since our marriage, has failed, so I was welcome.

After the event the next day, a bunch of family ended up at a local bar for drinks, the ex and I included. We were having a great time and I started wondering if my ex had finally learned how to have fun. Since I was the father of the bride, I bought her mother a few drinks and loaned her some money. She promised to pay me back in a week. After all, according to her, she was once my wife and should be trustworthy. The entire evening was thoroughly enjoyable. Everyone was so happy when we all left to go home.

In sixteen years, I have not been in such a close proximity with my ex wife. Sabrina's and Sheldon's marriage brought us together, and we actually acted decently towards each other. I was even thinking how nice it would be if we were still a family and hadn't divorced. But alas, what's done is done, and life goes on. My relationship with Charlene is going on fifteen years now and we're happy.

My ex wife still owes me sixty bucks and I haven't heard from her since that day. Some things never change.

Me and My Ex Wife 17 Years Ago