5 hrs. to kill on cold Sunday evening

[shootingstar]

Now please do not tell me to bike as a solution. It will be probably -15 degrees C after 5:00 pm.

They are replacing a backup generator in our highrise building. So tenants told for 5 hrs. this Sunday evening:

*no heat, no working elevators (it's a 19 storey building), security fob key will not work reliably, no hot water, no lights in hallway, no electricity.

Now I'm new to this city, so really outside of work, know no one. What would you do? My dearie has do biz in Vancouver..for next few wks.

And I'm gettin' a scratchy throat. Hope it's not not an infectious cold.. :confused: We were told of this power shutdown just a few days ago. :(


Hmmm, maybe a long restaurant dinner, movie... I already checked entertainment offerings. Pretty thin this Sunday evening in town. I'm not a bar/pub person. And no, I've already gone out of town (twice in past 2 months) with dearie and spent money on hotel, etc.

[Tri Girl]

do what I did when we lost power for 3 days during an ice storm 2 years ago: I curled up in bed with my down comforter, bundled up in my warmest pj's and read by candlelight/headlamp for hours on end. I used my camping stove to make hot chocolate.
Not fun, not glamorous, but what else could I do? ;)

Maybe you could go to a local bookstore and hang out for the evening? Go to a movie?

[Koronin]

I was thinking a long the lines of bookstore or movie? Could go out and eat somewhere then a movie? I know it sucks to do both of those alone, but it is an idea.

[NbyNW]

Dinner and a movie might burn through that 5 hours.

But given that it is during a portion of the day when you are probably getting ready for the work week and you have no place else to go, in my opinion, this is a significant inconvenience. I would ask the landlord/property manager to put you up in a hotel. But then again, I've been accused of being a pushy American so maybe things are different in Alberta.

Years ago when we lived in an apartment and our water heater broke down for 3 days, our landlord offered to put us up in a hotel. But that was in California, where we had pretty good tenants rights advocates and our landlord/management company was quite good in general.

[shootingstar]

Wow, NbyNW. No, it's not like that in Alberta.

Bookstore sounds good, except the closest one is small Chapters (actually called Indigo in Canada) 5 kms. away where some of the side streets are dark and too quiet for my taste. I did go wandering out to bookstores in the evening in VAncouver and Toronto, because the streets are close to major transit in winter, many people wandering about.

[isconniethere]

I would get caught up on sleep!

[PamNY]

I vote for the down comforter, headlamp and book plan that Tri Girl suggested. If you don't have battery-operated lights for power outages, this is your reminder to get them.

If you don't have a camping stove (or don't want to use one in an apartment) maybe you could have hot drinks in a thermos.

Will you be without water? If electricity is needed for pumping to a water tank, you might be.

Work like this often takes longer than expected, and you will be better off tucked in warm at home.

I lived through elevator replacement, 9/11 and a blackout in a high rise building, so I have learned to expect the worst, especially where elevators are involved.

Good luck, and hope you aren't getting sick.

Edit: Your building has a backup generator? That is so cool. Is the protection needed due to very low temps?

[NbyNW]

But if the building is not going to have heat while the work is going on, it could get VERY cold inside the building.

And if you potentially won't have water or a way to heat water, even to make a cup of tea? If it were me I would not plan on being there. Even if I wore my down parka, my boots that are rated to -40C, and wrapped myself in a down comforter, I probably could not do it for more than an hour. If nothing else I would go stir crazy being wrapped in a down burrito. 30-40 minutes outside, in constant motion walking my dog is my limit. Sedentary I don't think I'd last more than 10 minutes.

I'm sorry we're a full 3 hours away from you, because I'd offer you an air mattress and a spare room.

[shootingstar]

Should I come and visit you? :D ...the Monday is a statutory holiday in Alberta. It's family day. I'm a govn't employee. Ontario and British Columbia don't have such a holiday.

Methinks winter temperatures here often plunge lower than NYC or Oklahoma.

[crazycanuck]

Shootingstar, why not take a bus to Fort Mac? It's one place I must visit as I did a paper highlighting the housing shortages/transport issues/planning failures in Fort Mac & Port Hedland.

The other places I could suggest would be accessible only by vehicle at this time of year in Alberta ;)

[hebe]

Dinner and a movie might burn through that 5 hours.

But given that it is during a portion of the day when you are probably getting ready for the work week and you have no place else to go, in my opinion, this is a significant inconvenience. I would ask the landlord/property manager to put you up in a hotel. But then again, I've been accused of being a pushy American so maybe things are different in Alberta.

Years ago when we lived in an apartment and our water heater broke down for 3 days, our landlord offered to put us up in a hotel. But that was in California, where we had pretty good tenants rights advocates and our landlord/management company was quite good in general.

I'd be asking for this too. I'd be really surprised if health & safety legislation would look kindly on this, especially the bit about the security system possibly not working reliably. I have a background in disaster recovery and I would be very worried about security of the building and the potential risk in the event of fire or emergency. It's kind of different if it's completely unexpected, but as a planned outage I would honestly expect them to make some gesture towards hugely inconvenienced residents. I'm quite shocked to read that they won't, and I would be asking anyway (as a pushy Brit!) Presumably you pay maintenance charges of some sort?

Other than that, I suppose a meal and movie, and invoicing receipts.

[shootingstar]

Har, har, crazycanuck..Fort McMurray, land of wonderful air quality and inspiring stuff: oil tar sands and oil refining industries where temp. are even colder, 'cause it's several hundred kms. north of Edmonton. I'm south of Edmonton, for those unfamiliar with our terrain.

A place that lacks infrastructure because it's boom-bust-boom town.

I just hope to get better. I feel off and on edge of a cold. I agree hebe, no interest in wanting to feel trapped in a highrise building when the elevator won't be working.

[PamNY]

Ah, a cyclist isn't trapped. You should be better able to climb stairs than everyone else!

[NbyNW]

Should I come and visit you? :D ...the Monday is a statutory holiday in Alberta. It's family day. I'm a govn't employee. Ontario and British Columbia don't have such a holiday.


Um . . . maybe not if you're getting a cold! You would be better off towards putting that bus fare towards a hotel room. I've had good luck with priceline.com for last minute hotel reservations. Plus, William Shatner's Canadian, ya know?

I do worry that you could find yourself in a situation where it's hard to maintain your core body temp and then you really WILL get sick. Please take care of yourself. We can find another time to visit, as DH and I have been talking about maybe getting down to Calgary for a couple days to enjoy some restaurants and just get a change of scenery.

CC, I thought you were joking about Fort Mac! And then I realized that maybe you weren't. I have a friend who lives up there, her husband is a carpenter, building all those new homes you wrote about.

But you can also look at the newer parts of Edmonton for examples of what not to do.

While you're at it, there are some images on the Edmonton Journal of the City Centre Airport redevelopment concepts by the five shortlisted companies. And quite a lot of heated discussion. I'm going to try to go to one of the exhibits.

[malkin]

Bookstore and then pub.
If there's no one interesting at the pub, you can read whatever you got at the store.

[shootingstar]

Fort Mac...I've heard other stories. Sounds like a place for youngish person to make some money and then move on somewhere more livable. I heard from other employees where I work, who have friends working up there.....there's a practice of "hot bunking"...that's a person sleeps in shifts with other people for their bed. As soon as you finish sleeping, someone else gets to sleep in your bed. A sign of some companies too cheap to accommodate their employees properly. Or people saving on accommodation costs.

Always good to learn how one's city is changing, NBYNW. Drop me a line when you do plan to visit or need advice where to stay/what to see. At the very least do go through Banff /Lake Louise area if you haven't already. By the way, there is a recent/new bike path from Banff to Canmore. It's a flat 20-25 kms. one way.

On Calgary's website, you will find they seem to be on a binge to improve their parks. There's a park (nothing but an huge expanse of cut grass. Very typically prairie-like-- to me. It makes Toronto look lush.) a short bike ride away from us that they recently asked for public input/ideas.

We have a whole section East Village, that the city has plan to make it more livable, multi-family, etc. for walkability, etc..... I think it's a 15-yr. long plan with some parts done which include along bike path just last yr. Different developers involved or about to be involved.

I actually still feel abit off (whoozy)..and need to check into a hotel and pamper myself on that evening. I bought myself a book..something I haven't done um....over past 8 months or so. It is a long holiday weekend for us in this province.

No I don't mind eating solo in restaurants...happened before I met dearie, whenever I go on biz trips or whenever he is on long solo cycling trips when I am working.. I think it's actually easier for women to eat solo in restaurants in bigger cities compared to small town: you're less conspicuous because most people don't know who you are or even care. (Might sound alienating to some folks, but I like that type of anonymity when I eat alone, etc. I only want people who know me and care/love me to be interested in my life.)

So I discovered for a particular hotel, I qualified for their senior's rate....at over 50! My GAWD, I'm only 52. .I better make sure I have my ID..in case they ask. :p:D

[malkin]

That sounds lovely. Enjoy it!

I guess people live longer here. Senior discounts don't start until after 65.

[badger]

if a community centre's nearby and open, I'd go and do a bit of workout, swim (if there's a pool), sauna, shower, and just laze about and then go for dinner afterwards. Should kill most of the 5 hours. And then go home and curl up in bed with a book.

[PamNY]

Sounds like a hotel is a good idea, especially if you aren't feeling well.

You won't have to worry about delays in the repairs, or how long is takes the building to actually get warm after they turn the heat back on.

[crazycanuck]

Nby, yes I was serious. My mom's working up there atm and heaps of others I know do as well.

You may not realize it but Alberta/Western Australia/Queensland have HEAPS in common thanks to the mining boom. The question is( and it's one that Rio/FMG/BHP/Woodside probably aren't thinking about whilst they pillage our resources) what happens when the boom's over?

If you're bored, here's a link to just some of the good info from AHURI http://www.ahuri.edu.au/publications/projects/p80370

It's just starting to go crazy again here.

Sorry about the drift.

[NbyNW]

You may not realize it but Alberta/Western Australia/Queensland have HEAPS in common thanks to the mining boom. The question is( and it's one that Rio/FMG/BHP/Woodside probably aren't thinking about whilst they pillage our resources) what happens when the boom's over?

I've been thinking about this question quite a bit. I glanced at the article you linked and I've transferred it to my Kindle and will have time to read it tomorrow. Interesting that they use the term "resource boom town," since in my head I've been thinking of it as an "extraction-based economy."

[crazycanuck]

NB, I found some of what I wrote & here are some links that might be of interest..you could be reading for a while...If you can't access the journals, I'm happy to download them for you.

Alberta Government Oil Sands Ministerial Strategy Committee, 2006. Investing in our Future: Responding to the Rapid Growth of Oil Sands Development — Final Report. http://alberta.ca/home/395.cfm

http://www.woodbuffalo.ab.ca -there's a wealth of info on the site!

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. 2010. Housing Market Information: Housing Now, Prairie Region. First Quarter 2010. Ottawa.

Canada West Foundation, 2010. Look before you leap: Oil, Gas, The Western Economy and National Prosperity. Calgary. (www.cwf.ca)

Forsyth, Jennifer S. 2006. Northern Exposure: Oil-Rich Calgary Finds Boomtimes Have a Downside; A Hot Real-Estate Market Suffers Big Labor Shortage; Office Vacancies Near Zero; A Homeless Spellfor Mr. Blair. Wall Street Journal, Aug 30.

Singleton, H., and F.H. McKenzie. 2008. The rebranding imperative for the Western Australian Pilbara region: Status quo to transformative cultural interpretations of local housing and settlement for a competitive geo-regional identity. Place Branding and Public Diplomacy 4 (1): 8-28

http://ius.uwinnipeg.ca/index.html

Western Australia. Department of Planning and Infrastructure. 2008. Port Hedland: Regional Hotspots and Land Supply Update. Perth.

Western Australia. Western Australia Planning Commission. 1998. Karratha area development strategy. Perth

Western Australia PLanning Commission. 2003. Port Hedland Area Planning Study (www.planning.wa.gov.au)

WAPC-Port Hedland-Regional Hotspots Land Supply Update

http://www.roebourne.wa.gov.au/ (Info on karratha, one of the most affected towns by the boom)

http://www.planning.wa.gov.au/Search/Search_Search.aspx?search=karratha