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“You say that you’re leaving. Well, that comes as no surprise.”
— Hasn’t Hit Me Yet by Blue Rodeo
The Macro
On Monday morning of this week, I had one of the best breakfasts ever.
I had always wanted to visit Modern Electric Lunch on Main Street but for some reason, I never made it happen. However, having been forced to flee our house while potential buyers kicked the tires, we needed sanctuary. MEL provided that sanctuary.
The Cochinita Hash was heavenly. Poached eggs, wonderful soft mini potatoes, pulled pork, pickled onion, pineapple salsa, feta and lime. It may seem like a lot, but it all came together in an angelic blend.
As I mopped up my plate, I was suddenly struck by a sad thought: on this, one of the last days I can count myself a Winnipegger, I found another place to miss.
I can now officially confirm I will be leaving Winnipeg after 39 years. Thankfully, I won’t be leaving the Free Press.
I came here in 1986 after working for the Calgary Herald. And I can actually say that I’ve never regretted a moment of my time at the Free Press.
I’ve had chances to leave, but before I could pull the ripcord, the paper gave me a better job. The more I reinforced my decision to stay, the greater the defender of Winnipeg I became.
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Winnipeg is an isolated, fiercely independent place that really has all of the things you could want from a city, save for the buzz that comes from a bigger population.
It has given me the opportunity to hang art on my walls from artists I have met, eat in restaurants where I know the chef, and listen to music played by musicians I know. Those are not things that many people in larger cities get to say.
More importantly, it is a place that does not really seek the approval of people who live in other places. Winnipeggers will lustily criticize their hometown, to be sure, but criticize us from away and we’ll drop the mitts in a heartbeat.
The future for me will be different, but also thankfully the same. I will continue to write columns, news stories, editorials and this newsletter for the FP from Picton, Ont., where my lovely wife has accepted a wonderful job.
Now, as we have only days left before our departure, I want to provide a list of the things I will miss the most. It’s not comprehensive, but may be the single longest paragraph I’ve ever written:
- The Winnipeg Art Gallery including its rooftop gardens, patio and art rental gallery;
- the Exchange District and all of its wonderful, hidden treasures;
- the Martha Street printmakers studio;
- Canada Life Centre during a Winnipeg Jets Whiteout playoff game;
- the Alt and Mere hotels, where we enjoyed all our staycations;
- my favorite breakfast spots including the Falafel Place, Stella’s, Clementine and (now) Modern Electric Lunch;
- the Oval Room at the Fort Garry Hotel;
- the Pyramid Cabaret;
- the Burton Cummings Theatre (even with the lack of leg room in the balconies);
- the Manitoba Legislature;
- the St. Boniface Cathedral;
- the immense power and awe of Lake Winnipeg;
- Hecla Island resort in all of its incarnations;
- Quarry Oaks Golf Course near Steinbach;
- the Trappers Tavern in Thompson;
- Cargo Bar and the gardens, ponds and cricket fields in Assiniboine Park;
- Birds Hill Park during the Winnipeg Folk Festival;
- Falcon Lake, both the park and the golf course;
- The Beer Can near the Osborne Street Bridge;
- Park Alleys and the Park Theatre;
- RAW:Almond restaurant on the river ice;
- Dinner for 1200 (various locations);
- The Forks Market Common and patio;
- Nuburger;
- JCs Tacos and More;
- Wako Sushi Cafe;
- The Grove;
- Chosabi;
- Ramallah Café on Pembina;
- the late (but hopefully not forgotten) Winnipeg Free Press News Café;
- CJNU Nostalgia Radio;
- We Heart Winnipeg/House of Local on Watt Street;
- the Elgin Avenue street markets;
- my tattoo artist Wes Harcus;
- G is for Glasses on Taylor;
- my barber Jeremy Regan;
- Strive Fitness;
- the Ukrainian babas who made our perogies in a North End church basement;
- any youth hockey arena in Winnipeg hosting a playoff game;
- all the hard-working, on-ice officials, coaches and players I met while refereeing hockey;
- the spectacular Canadian Museum for Human Rights and accompanying Riel Esplanade;
- and the profoundly friendly confines of Riverview, the neighborhood that gave us so many great experiences and friends.
This list does not include all of the incredible people we met here in Winnipeg, both through my job and through community events, youth sports and just hanging around at the right places at the right time. This is a city of great thinkers and creators and I’m very proud to call many of them friends.
We weren’t looking to leave Winnipeg, even though we talked quite a bit about leaving. Someday.
Now that someday has come, we are as sad as we are excited about our new adventure.
To borrow again from Blue Rodeo (with a dash of Weakerthans), over nearly four decades living in this One Great City, the great dark wonders of Winnipeg worked their way into the waves of my heart.
Go forth without me, Winnipeg. And thrive.
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