Well, the morning came and I went out to check the car…no dent, no dent, oh GOOD LORD I FOUND THE DENT! Right in the rear driver side wheel was the markings which looked like Santa’s sleigh had hit the Mazda as there was a streak of red within the dent. All in all, it wasn’t that bad (well, at least in my opinion. Ask the opinion of the person who paid the repairs!) and later that day, Vero and I headed up to Hearst.
Hearst was fine as we chatted for a bit and I got a nice thermos set from Vero’s parents. We then went out for Chinese Food (with toast! Only in Hearst!) which was an excellent meal. We then went over to Vero’s sister’s place to play some poker and enjoy some hot tub. I enjoy the company of the Cantin’s and I especially enjoy going over to Steve’s and Anne-Marie’s as there is always a good selection of music and always some form of wild game hanging in the garage. Steve and I have the same music tastes as well as the same stereo amp from back in the day so it is a sign.
I am glad that the hot tub had some walls around it this year as last year I thought I lost an ear to the cold -60 windchill. Alright, perhaps it wasn’t that extreme.
The next day didn’t consist of much at all as we arose from our slumber around noon and then we brought the car in for some body work. I am thankful that we managed to get it done in Hearst as it’s a heck of a lot easier when you actually know the person doing the job (as it was Vero’s Dad’s cousin) instead of bringing it to some random guy in Ottawa. Later afternoon, Vero’s step-mom’s family all showed up for some good spaghetti dinner and then they cheered me onto stage as I took my guitar.
We opened up the evening with some french song with Mr. Cantin on the accordian. While I can’t say I knew really what the song was about, it was meant to get people moving after a huge meal. After that was over (an excellent duet between Mr. Cantin and I with Anne-Marie and Vero dancing with everybody!). Unfortunately I don’t know any francophone songs so the family had to listen to a few English rockers that went over well. Vero’s cousin is auditioning for Canadian Idol sometime in the spring so she sang Drove All Night (or something to that effect – Celine Dion covering Cyndi Lauper) which I managed to figure out after a few minutes of listening to the CD. Then they wanted me to sing Phantom of the Opera with her! I had no idea how to sing this song but no one could really understand why I couldn’t sing it. So I explained it in the following way:
Me (to her cousin): Well…let me put it to you this way…can you sing Stairway To Heaven for me right now?
Cousin: No.
Me: Well, that’s exactly how I feel about Phantom of the Opera!
After a good laugh, Vero’s uncle and I attempted to sing along with her cousin on the Phantom and can say that we didn’t do too bad. In fact, I may in fact be leaving my job to become a full-time Phantom.
All in all, I heard I rocked the socks off of the Cantin clan which was nice to hear as I didn’t know if they would appreciate the English tunes. However, in my ignorance, I should realize that English tunes are still heard throughout the North and just because you are Francophone, doesn’t mean you live in a shoe.
After the night died down, Vero and I watched the Maurice Richard movie which was excellent. I highly recommend it. I thought it was strange that it didn’t follow his entire career in the NHL though. It ended with 5 years to go. Perhaps a sequel?