port elgin is where?

So it took me 5 and a half hours to reach Port Elgin...that's right, 5.5. What didn't help was that I was working in Scarborough & finished at 5 so I got caught in horrible 401 traffic. How do people drive in traffic like that everyday without going insane? It took over an hour just to reach Brampton, where traffic finally cleared and I was off. Ok, nothing really exciting actually. Stopped in Orangeville for dinner. That is an odd town. It seems to consist of suburban Big Box Outlet Malls all meshed into one gigantic compound. So you'll have your Canadian Tire, Wendy's/Tim Hortons, and the local movie theatre sharing one parking area, and then there will be a path linking it to another parking area meant for McDonald's, Home Depot, etc etc. There are no streets from one plaza to the next. Odd.

Continued my way up north, everything going well, no cars around really, listening to Franz. Occasionally must use the highbeams for a couple of minutes. Those lights are amazing, but can be kind of scary knowing that when you turn them on, you can see all the snow coming at you. But no worries since it was a light snow and not a storm. Then I hit Chatsworth and according to trusty Mapquest, I have to make a sharp left onto Route 6. No problem. Turn right onto Concession Road 40. Did that. Continued to follow Mapquest's advice...and got lost. The problem is that Mapquest usually gives the most direct route but not necessarily the clearest route since it uses smaller streets. And these small streets in nowhereland are freaking scary at night. No lights. No other cars. No people. One house every 5km. Car slid a couple of times (well, that was my fault, I was going relatively fast). Must use highbeams for full 20 minutes at a time. Wasn't panicking too much though, just frustrated knowing that I was driving for so long and still wasn't in Port Elgin yet. Grrr. Ignored phone calls from Eli and Kartik (sorry!). But I finally managed to make it to the town, probably an hour later than if I hadn't gotten lost. Thanks to the girl at the Max counter, the man walking his dog in Scone (or was that Chesley?), and the man coming home from playing hockey in Paisley. Lovely small town folk :) Reached the Colonial Motel just before 11pm. Got out of the car and saw that the back of my car was all white from the backsplash of the snow-covered country roads. Nice.

Had a pretty good sleep and woke up early for breakfast in the motel (which was surprisingly nice for a "motel"). I love breakfast food. Mmmm, good stuff. Then off to work...across the street! Working in Aurora, I thought I knew small town pharmacy. But this was serious small town pharmacy. The town itself seems pretty nice, with small-town shops, friendly people, and the beach (well I'm sure right now that's not important). I think the population of Port Elgin is 6 or 7 thousand. It's right on Lake Huron. Anyway, everyone, EVERYONE was so great. I had absolutely no problems with dumb people (and I'm not being harsh...people really are dumb). The pharmacy assistants at the store have been there for a long time and knew their stuff. One of them was there for over 20 years! And they knew everyone who came into the pharmacy. The slow pace was really nice too. The "rush" at lunchtime could hardly be considered so. It was still a busy pharmacy, about 150 prescriptions a day. I guess the pacing is totally different. And there was no "I don't pay $2" crap. When people ask for your advice, they actually take it...they don't stay in the aisle for another 10 minutes after you've talked to them and take the product they had wanted in the first place that wasn't even what you recommended. That PharmaPlus was one of the most enjoyable experiences I've had so far. The store & people were just amazing. I know I wouldn't be able to live in a small town just so I could work in a pharmacy like that. However, once in a while, it's a really nice change.

Finished work at 7pm. Tried one of those Toasted Deli sandwiches at McDonald's for dinner (I know, fast food 2 days in a row :( But those sandwiches are good...). Stopped by Petro for gas, got directions on how to get home using larger streets, and made it home before 11pm. Whew. I don't blame Mapquest but next time I go somewhere I gotta make sure its directions don't include smaller streets. I guess it wasn't too bad but it was nighttime and I couldn't seem a damn thing.

I hope I do get to go to that pharmacy again (yes, it was that good of an experience that I'm willing to drive back!). Or visit the town. Hmmm...MacGregor Point is a camping ground right by Port Elgin. Or a little further north is Sauble Falls. Not that I plan to organize the camping trip this year. Just an idea!