Burli! Lass Die Fusse 'Runter !

We were sitting on a streetcar in Vienna in 1975, me Martina and Jamey. Jamey had a window seat to himself and was curled up watching the world go by.I was next to him with Martina on my lap. We had been somewhere with my Mother-in -law, I can't remember where and we were all sleepy and daydreamy.
Into this reverie squawked an ugly shrill voice from the seat ahead of me. It came from a scrawny little woman with thin grey hair pulled up in a tiny tight bun and a wee shrewish face.She was looking at Jamey and shrilling at him"Burli,lass die fusse 'runter (little boy put your feet down.)
It took all of us a minute to first, figure out what she was saying and then, to whom. Jamey just looked confused then resumed his stare out the window.Martina started to suck her thumb.I looked for help from my Mother -in- law but when I saw her turn her head away and fixate on something outside the window I knew it was up to me.
Now to give those of you non Austrians a heads up you have to understand that in Austria if you see a child that needs attention good or bad you give it. Whether said child is alone or with parents doesn't matter. It takes a village to raise a child is in the heart of everyone there, especially little angry women. I've been got at too when my shoelace was undone and I was no child!
Back to the Strassenbahn.When I saw Oma stick her head up her ass I mustered all the German I had for my reply and realized it was sorely lacking. So I did the next best thing and tried to ignore the repeated complaints. Little Shrew Woman was getting shriller and redder by the minute and poor Jamey was now aware that he was in trouble, but how?
Finally I leaned forward and let her have both barrels in English! Quietly. The little shrew deflated like a pricked balloon.
Something else you have to understand about Austrians.They are very ingratiating with foreigners no matter how much they despise them in their hearts.To be shown up in public by going after a tourist was more than she had bargained for. She was so badly mortified I felt sorry for her. A bit.
By the way his little feet were clean.

Bewildered in the Bluffs

It's been a while since I wrote anything and I was beginning to feel a bit frantic as I have too much choice as subject matter and also not as much time as I used to have to mull things over. It's resulted in a flurry of activity at home and abroad and not much thinking.
In Aurora I had far too much time on my hands and plenty of time to rummage around in what passes for a brain. Now it seems my feet just touch the floor in the morning and we're off!
There has been a fair amount of confusion in the house as it undergoes its transformation.I was prepping meals and doing the washing up in the downstairs loo for what seemed like forever. I am back in the kitchen now but we are still not firing on all cylinders. Hope is high that the dishwasher will be operational today or tomorrow and that the heat will be on ditto.
I also can trot off to Chinatown and buy cheap bananas and pills at a moments notice. I can and have, strolled through Little India on a mild winter's day looking for incense.De Serres is just over on the Danforth and I could spend weeks there quite happily. Of course the AGO is thirty minutes away and I have a pass!!! There is family to visit, two of whom provide food and drink on a professional basis.
I am telling you I can't remember having so much to do and almost all of it fun.Even the walk around the track at Variety Village though it was mind numbingly boring made Lola feel like a new woman.We are used to water exercise Lola and I so the track is something new for us.
Right now I am looking for an holistic dentist and there are choices for goodness sake!
I feel sorry for everyone back in dull little Aurora and I expect they are feeling sorry for me trying to cope with life in the Smoke.The other sorry I feel is that this move should have happened years ago but never mind, we are here now!

Regret

So here's the story:
After a lifetime of hand copying ancient texts, an elderly monk became abbot of his monastery.Realizing that for centuries his order had been making copies of copies, he decided to examine some of the monastery's original documents. Days later, the other monks found him in the cellar,weeping over a crumbling manuscript and moaning,"It says 'celebrate', not 'celibate'!"