Booze and a Haircut

It was raining and Carl got called into work, so in a moment of boredom I went to the hairdresser. Sigh. Will I never learn? They don't listen. Just carve that on my tomb stone. Now I am scalped, shorn, ignored and $35 dollars poorer. They pack you out the door with a wet head and I got attitude from the chicka on the cash that next customer has been waiting and wants colour done.. well big deal. Hope you like the money I won't be back and I will be sending a letter to the hair salon registering my disapproval. I would rather pay $100 for a decent haircut than take that. It's enough to make you drink.


Which brings me to my next topic. If you don't live in Ontario you will not know about our Victorian attitude to the evils of selling alcohol. Alcohol, aka Spirits, are only sold in an LCBO store. That would be the Liquor Control Board of Ontario also known as the Liquor Licensing Board or if you work for them (as my daughter does) simply, "The Board." (see below) It is a provincial government run establishment. Beer is only sold here or at "The Beer Store." Wine can be purchased in wine outlets at most large chain operated grocery stores. Never IN the store itself. God forbid the hooch should be an aisle away from the cereal and diapers.

I was thinking about when I was a child. The legal drinking age was 21. The only liquor store in town was a raised red brick building. There was a tall flight of stairs to the IN door and another from the OUT door. If you were unable to climb stairs you were out of luck. These solid doors opened onto a foyer with another large solid door. God forbid anyone walking by would be able to see inside. Children were left in the car unattended, better to take their chances with a kidnapper than to bring them inside and chance them being scared for life by seeing row upon row of sparking bottles of Crown Royal. The only windows were the size of the average basement window and were along the top of the wall. Unless you were hang gliding past there was no fear of you being seduced by the sight of evil liquor.. I kid you not. Your purchase was delivered in a heavy brown paper bag.

I couldn't wait to be 21 to get inside there and look around. The all male employees who unfortunately knew my father would never have let me cross the threshold before then.

Now, the sun shines in the huge windows and all and sundry are welcomed by automatic sliding doors. Last weekend my mother asked if we could go to the (whisper) liquor store??? She wondered if they sold icewine in a single serving box. She couldn't go to the liquor store where she lived because then everyone in town would know and she was curious how it tasted. So off we go. Mom hid out in the car and I went in an bold as brass (lol) bought her a bottle of ice wine, single serving, $7.95 and asked if they still had plain brown paper bags. How will she ever recyle a bag from the ...liquor store....!!!!

I can hear my children laughing. Granny will be 84 in May and please don't tell her I posted this she will have a fit and worry that everyone in town will think she has a drinking problem.

See the happy person on the right? She stays away from scissors.