Things I miss

I was thinking about this a few weeks ago, as my classes were watching Madagascar.
I have not mentioned people, because then I might forget someone, and everyone would get offended, or offended for their friends.
Here it is:
Anonymity: Oh, to blend in again. Of course, I did grow a beard, so I should probably not comment about not being able to blend in.
Stars: You can't really see stars here. This is what inspired the list, when Alex the Lion points out that the star is out, but it turns out to be a helicopter. I miss being able to see a sea of stars, with a misty star backdrop. I try to explain it to my students, but they just don't get it.
Quiet: Korea, land of the morning calm. More like land of the white noise and honking horn.
Live music at parties: I've been doing my part... but I really miss being able to jam with friends on any given party night, or stopping in at someone's house and hearing music being played in a back room somewhere.
Patios: specifically patios with beer and all-day breakfasts. And back-yard varieties that come equipped with a grill. oh yeah.
Variety: I'm starting to find it now, but I would love to have a little more... like, infinite.
Big dogs chasing frisbees
FRISBEES!
Pogos - they have something like it here, but it's not the same. Also road trips to the Riv in Sturgeon.
Poutine - see above
seasonality - eye-brow frosting cold, and an actual change from winter to spring to summer... it all just seems to blend here.
Spring and the emergence of girls in summer clothing - this follows naturally from the previous, of course. With seasonality comes a change in fashions... here, it's the same, pretty much all year, which is not a complaint, but absence makes the heart grow fonder, as they say. And there was nothing like that first day sitting in the JDUC Tim Hortons... ah, memories. JOHN! Back me up on this, I'm sounding pervy!
Italian Barbers - Please, won't someone compliment my shoes with a charming accent? Shave my neck?! Oh wait, scratch that one. No, not my neck! augh!
Big red tomatoes - Like dad used to grow beside our house on Morin Street, and bring home sometimes from clients' gardens. All the tomatoes here have a disquieting pinkish-green tinge.
Lakes!!!! - Oh man, I'm not much of a swimmer, but driving by lakes is one of my great joys, to see the light reflected, and the forest on the other side...
Driving - in continuing word association, driving. I miss long distance driving, not nuisance driving like what I have to do to see anyone since my parents moved. Like, driving to Huntsville for a sandwich.
Wild Animals - , oh the stories I have relayed to the kids... my mom's record of confirmed porcupine kills as they tried to eat the undercarriage of her car, almost hitting deer on my bike, bears trying to eat our barbecue, moose staring into our dining room...
The Bike path! - (do you see how this game works yet?!) I miss the bike path. A lot. I miss biking, I miss rollerblading, I miss the ladder in the trees that made me all paranoid that night.
The comedy network - I've been watching a lot less TV lately, but I could easily become addicted to SCTV reruns again.
Used book stores - actually, since making this list, I discovered the library at the international center, and am now reading at length at the most admired/hated of Canadian leaders, Pierre Elliott Trudeau.
Public Parks with Grassy Areas - if it's a park, I should have a grassy place to lie and throw a frisbee long-distances. Case closed.
Open-mic nights - well, there is an open mic night here sometimes. More, I miss playing with high-school friends at open mic nights.
microbreweries - actually, there's one of these here too... maybe I just miss university.
concerts - okay, this one actually does not exist here, often at least... there's the speakeasy, which is great... but I rarely feel like drinking that much.
Running into friends at the grocery store - it's fun to be in the grocery store and see someone from highschool and have a little catch-up session... oh, you're married? Two kids! Wow! Yeah, I've been in Korea... no, South. yeah, it's pretty good.
Garage Sales - Where am I to buy my cheezy Westerns?! I need my pulp fiction fix, and also this record player. and these cross-country skis. That's all though. oh, and this old English text book.
Nature trails - oh flat hiking... sigh
HARVEY'S - I would give my cat's paw for a spiced beef patty grilled on a sesame seed bun.
SWISS CHALET - I love chalet sauce, and given a choice between chalet sauce and water, beer, wine and milk, I choose chalet sauce. For bathing.