Day of Firsts

Yesterday, Saturday 23 January, was a day of firsts for me. 

I have lived in Newfoundland and Labrador since 1967, and yet yesterday at the Country Kitchen Cafe in Brigus, I had my first taste of bologna! And this was not your ordinary, everyday bologna, but smoked bologna prepared by the chef and owner Dave Collins. He buys a regular Maple Leaf bologna (round, not square), coats it with a rub of his own design, then heats it on a BBQ just long enough for the rub to take effect. The result, combined with the Quay breakfast - two eggs, home fries, toast and coffee - was magnificent!

My second first was gaining a confirmed vote for my election. I won't identify who it was, but the adrenaline rush it gave me set me up for the rest of the day.

And my third? Planting my first election sign in the front garden of the secondary home of our leader Alison Coffin, in Brigus!


All of this followed my collecting the preliminary list of voters for the Harbour Main District from the Returning Officer in Avondale. There I found a team from Elections NL hard at work getting the office set up, in spite of the obstacles. I discovered, for example, that while there were phone numbers assigned, no handsets had been delivered. The RO said she had to gout shopping for them after the office was closed for the day. Now to start telephoning electors...

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