One Monday, while cutting through Yaletown on foot, I witnessed an odd convergence -- coming down one side of the block was a mother and a toddler, the latter waving a small Vancouver Canucks flag, while coming down the other side was a man and his Great Dane.

The man and his dog arrived at the corner first, where the dog went into b.m. mode and produced, in short order, a rather large pile. No sooner had the dog stepped away when the toddler raced ahead and planted the flag atop the pile. Pleased, the toddler turned to the mother for affirmation, and the mother froze.

So did everyone else at the corner

Hey, someone said to the man, you gonna pick that up? To which the man replied, No way, I hate the Canucks.