Welcome To Calgary

 

The plane touched down and off we went into the frozen expanse of Calgary's airport. It's larger now and the new terminal seems a bit less friendly than the original but whatever, it works, and some 30 minutes and a taxi later there I was in Inglewood, right off of downtown. Hippies? Use the backdoor, without exception.

a typical Calgarian kitchen scene

Entering appropriately through the front door, the fun began, beginning and ending, curiously, at the Swan pub. Nice. It was good to be back in the land of the ice and snow and I like this part of Calgary, with its shops and eateries and downtowny vibe on a UK meets US tip.

Colonel McLeod

The next day was all about strolling around town, which isn't hard because the city center's only 20 minutes walk away. March over the bridge from Inglewood to Fort Calgary, admiring the Bow river to your right, with its excellent fly fishing, salute the the statue of Colonel McLeod, then walk with purpose through East Village towards the hideous new city library and find yourself on Stephen Avenue.

Stephen Ave

All good, but gasp in dismay at the Hyatt's bar, why, you fools, did you remove the BISON HEAD from above the fireplace? Walk away in disgust from that place. Also wonder at hideously overpriced steak houses as you mourn the loss of the Arctyrx/Mountain Adventure shop. Huh, I guess COVD got you while sparing the unpleasant Patagonia store. 

Just look at this hideous concrete portrait of tyranny

So yes, the scamdemic claimed a few victims in this High Street and there you have it, but think of all the money others made; rejoice for your rulers. Speaking of which, on your return take time to walk through the brutalist concrete nightmare that is Calgary's Town Hall.

 

Is that a Bofors gun sitting idle?

Then, safely back in Inglewood, detour by Crown Surplus. What a neat little store, complete with artillery in the yard. And there you have it, what a lot of fun to be back in Calgary, I like it here.

More on this exciting adventure as it unfolds,

LSP

Go to The Gunshop And Get a Haircut

A visit to Calgary isn't complete, for me at least, without a visit to the city's world famous Gun Shop Barber. That's right, a gun shop that's also a barber; you'll find it in Inglewood on 9th Avenue, and it's called Proline Shooters. I went there yesterday to browse the guns and get a cut.

Proline has a good, if smallish selection of firearms, and I cast a covetous eye at their burnished Sakos, gleaming behind the counter. Their pistol selection featured Glocks, Berettas and, I think, Sigs, plus a variety of I want one large revolvers. I may be wrong, but it seems that Canada bought into Beretta's PX4 Storm to a greater extent than the U.S. Whatever, Proline carries several variants. 

Then, after looking at a couple of sporterized Lees in the 2nd hand rack, I paid a visit to Dan the barber.

Dan, Photo by Jared Sych

We reminisced about his predecessor, Doug, who died of pancreatic cancer some years back. I liked Doug and was always curious about his socialism. Calgary's Red Barber, in a gun shop, that was him. May he rest in peace.

Haircut over, I headed out into the winter wonderland of 9th Avenue, and that, readers, was that.

Go to Proline, they're alright, and so's their barber, Dan.

Shoot straight,

LSP

Go Out And Get a Hat, in Calgary

After a short blast of living the downtown Calgarian dream, I fell back to Inglewood, which is nifty little neighborhood near the center of town.

Random Fridge Magnet -- Note former Detroit Mayor, with "entourage"

Inglewood's alright, it has shops, pubs, restaurants, an army surplus and Calgary's world famous barber gunshop. That's right, a gunshop that's also a barber, so you can go in there and get your hair cut and buy a gun. I'll go next week for a cut, it's a tradition.

Inglewood

As I walked around crunching my way through the snow, I noticed it was getting warmer, considerably so. It seemed like a Chinook was moving in, giving respite from the subzero, freeze your hair cold.

Your Old Pal

That meant a trip to the Chinook Center Mall, on McLeod Trail. I bought a hat from Lammles Western Store; it's a "Justin" and I wasn't able to get one in the right size or color in Texas. Well done, Calgary. You are a hat solutions provider.

Stay on the horse,

LSP

New Year's Day in Inglewood

What will 2015 bring? Will the cold war against Russia get colder and then hotter? Will mainstream Western Anglicanism continue its downward spiral into sexually induced apostasy? 

Who knows, and rather than consult an Angelic Alphabet to scry the answers, I stepped out into the pleasant streets of Inglewood.

I like it here and enjoy the Edwardian architecture, which dates from Calgary's days as a Northern outpost of Empire.

Now the shops are mostly the kind of artsy boutiques you find in places like Austin, or San Francisco, and they're not cheap. Still, it's neat to look in the windows and congratulate yourself on having the good sense to be immune from the lure of their pricey wares.

There's restaurants too, and a deli called Spolumbo's. Spolumbo's sells delicious European and English sausage. If you like bangers and mash, Spolumbo's is your shop. You can get beer on tap there and drink it as you congratulate yourself on a fine purchase of excellent sausage.

Then there's the Minh Chau, which pretends to serve Vietnamese food. I'd avoid that, if I were you, and go to the Swan instead. The Swan is a pub, where you can drink beer and eat food.

Typical Canadian House. Note Antler

Maybe that's where I'll go later, to celebrate New Year's day.

Have a great New Year!

LSP