From my window at work, I can see the backyards of the beautiful row houses on Milton between St-Urbain and Clark. I pretty much know all the faces that go with the houses and its hard not to form impressions of people based on what you see them do in their backyard. For example, right now, in the middle of winter, the skinny smoking retired lady is *sweeping* her backyard. Yup! She's sweeping snow. With a lit cigarette in her mouth. I know that was a sentence fragment. But. I like them. I quit smoking more than two years ago, and I wonder about this lady sometimes. I see her often booting up St-Laurent on foot, likely to get groceries or something, and she *always* has a cigarette in her hand. Always. If I were her age and I was still smoking, if I weren't already dead, I'd be suffering from a bad ticker and emphysema. Must be all that activity that keeps her alive. Sweep your way to better health!