At long last

When the beauty that is may of dreams, was still in its infancy, an idea was had. An idea that would inspire may of dreams to blossom into what it now is and forever will be. This idea came into being when Mike made an observation one day while leisurely scanning the local area in his atlas (googlemaps). He noticed that there was a canal leading from cootes paradise all the way into dundas, where of course a beer store is located. Putting the two together one of the greatest quests of all time was born. After some preliminary scouting Mr. Afanasiev brought this idea before a counsel of bros, upon which May of Dreams was born.

Some may say this quest to canoe to the beerstore is the foundation on which may of dreams was built. At the very least the cornerstone which holds it together. It therefore became concerning when three weeks in we had not accomplished this epic feat. The real challenge was getting the canoe from Sara's house, all the way up the mountain. Yet when the good weather came and Mike was able to obtain a vehicle, the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. It was on this fateful day in which we would attempt the long awaited trip.

After obtaining the canoe, and seeing Sara's 13 year old dog do some cool tricks, we all met at arnold and set off on what promised to be an adventure. Upon getting to princess point, the gentlemen decided that Sara would wait while 4 bros went on the first trip. Having soccer myself I was hoping the round trip would take under 45 minutes, as was Sara.

As we set sail from princess point we couldn't help but notice the beauty of cootes paradise. Even with the murky brown water and floating shit, we marveled at the wonder of nature while paddling across open water. We made our way to the canal.

Once at the canal we realized that cootes paradise is very shallow. While pushing the canoe along the bottom we grew wary of the surrounding swans. As the situation worsened, a decision was made to beach and portage over what looked like a promising island. On the other side, the water remained shallow but with determination is every stroke, we found deeper water and continued onwards. At this point we entered the canal and took yet another wrong turn.

Beached again we were defenceless against the hordes of oncoming mutant fish. Fish the size of cows were fast approaching and at times attacking the canoe. Some may say Bram peed his pants. We were forced to get out in ankle deep mud and portage across a sandbar.

Once on the other side it was smooth sailing. Through a winding canal we canoed, enjoying the beauty of cootes. We observed many swans, ducks, among other fowl, and at point we saw what was thought to be an alligator. Unfortunately it was not, yet not to disappoint we realized it was some sort of rodent such as an otter or muskrat swimming alongside the canoe. This was clearly the spirit coming to say hello.

After much paddling we arrived in dundas where we got out, portaged the canoe across a field, and then parked it nicely at the beerstore. In the midst of much celebration and jubilation, some knuckle head almost drove over our canoe, but don't tell Sara. In stark contrast, another customer getting out of his car exclaimed "HAHAHAHA, THAT COULD BE A COMMERCIAL!". Cool. At the beerstore the boys each grabbed some tasty cold ones and borrowed the phone to call Sara.

At this point it will suffice to say Sara was not pleased because in contrast to the expect half hour trip, she had been sitting alone for the past 2 hours. James and Scott had chosen to chill at home for a while knowing it would take a while, leaving Sara shoeless and alone. A sad situation indeed remedied only by the fact spirit was clearly taking care of her. Needless to say she was a little less than happy when talking to the victorious bros, yet a plan was made anyways for Joms, Scott and Sara to drive to dundas and trade off, canoeing back.

Once arriving Sara heard of all the mud and chose to simply drive back with the boys. At this point Mike, Scott and Joms had a lovely paddle back at dusk, witnessing a turtle larger than thought possible, and a very frightened and flustered beaver.



The other boys took a stop at Brian's where he made amends with Sara by cooking her a steak.

Afterwards the boys chose to shower and reconvened at 50 Arnold to commence another ambitious task: Century Club. With the voice of James Brown guiding us, we began to drink a shot of beer every minute. Everything was going well until approximately the 30th shot when our friend Scott had to vomit. Following suit Joms was not feeling well and had to miss a couple shots. With great music playing and the beer flowing everyone was feeling great.

NOTE: at this point we discovered the key to century club: burping.

It was looking like Brian, Mike and Myself were going all the way until Mike retired to the backyard and came back to tell us he threw up. So close to the end, Brian too fell and vomited a surprisingly large amount into the predetermined plastic bags. Nonetheless the boys caught up and even continued doing shots after the 100 minute mark to prove their prowess. I myself finished without vomiting for the first time, and will be recognized by the Government of Canada, being given the Royal Medal of Honour in June.

At this point all the gentlemen were quite drunk, and enjoyed some lovely music as well as a song Mike wrote recently for May of Dreams. With such comradeship, before retiring to bed, the boys told each other how much they mean to one another. There is no doubt in my mind the spirit was more potent this night than perhaps ever before.

FTB.