8/29/2005
Last Day
Yes I am extremely sad. However it's nice to be sad because I had such a great time with my love. It's really been a magical time getting to know Leslie through our correspondence and through our visits. Each time we meet things get deeper and deeper. Given some of my history it is not without trepidation that I saw this relationship develop but now I am past the fears and am feeling joyous and tranquil.
We wandered around the Parliament buildings, saw the cat house (which seems to be inhabited by squatting squirrels with mange), had lunch on Sparks St. and saw the CBC lock-out in action. It was intersting to see that the locked-out employees have set up there own alternative media presence with a Lockout blog and daily shows live from Sparks Street.
It's a hot and humid day so we are laying low and just enjoying each others company. And my nosiy neighbours moved out last night, as I discovered when I went up last night at 1:00 am to ask what on earth was all the racket."we are out of your lives forever." Said the woman upstairs. SWeet words.
I realize my previous entry may have sounded a mite glum. I really did enjoy my visit too despite some strange realizations. I wish we could have spent more time with everyone as Leslie said but at least we did have Friday night. I look forward to the next time.
We wandered around the Parliament buildings, saw the cat house (which seems to be inhabited by squatting squirrels with mange), had lunch on Sparks St. and saw the CBC lock-out in action. It was intersting to see that the locked-out employees have set up there own alternative media presence with a Lockout blog and daily shows live from Sparks Street.
It's a hot and humid day so we are laying low and just enjoying each others company. And my nosiy neighbours moved out last night, as I discovered when I went up last night at 1:00 am to ask what on earth was all the racket."we are out of your lives forever." Said the woman upstairs. SWeet words.
I realize my previous entry may have sounded a mite glum. I really did enjoy my visit too despite some strange realizations. I wish we could have spent more time with everyone as Leslie said but at least we did have Friday night. I look forward to the next time.
8/28/2005
Home
It rained alot last night and we woke up to a very humid Montreal. We went to the Old Europe to stock up on cheese, chocolate and biscuits before taking the bus back to Ottawa. The ride was quick, one hour and 40 minutes, compared to the two and a half hour trip into Montreal on Friday evening. We had a nice weekend but it went by too fast. It was great to see that everyone is well, and nice to gather together once more.
It was surreal for me at times being back in Mile End but this time with a new person, Leslie, in my life. It was even stranger that the wool shop she wanted to see turned out to be just around the corner from where I last lived on the east Plateau. I must have walked by that shop hundreds of times without taking much notice of it. Things had this feeling of a strange disjuncture as I waited on the bench outside the store while Leslie perused the wool inside. I never would have imagined that events would unrole as they did all those times when I actually lived there.
One thing I didn't expect was that I along with the old feelings and memories I uncovered the fact that compared to now I had felt trapped living there. Trapped by my limited linguistic skills, lack of a social life and the general floating depression of living in the same neighbourhood as where my divorce took place. I was nuts to have stayed under that cloud for so long. The reasons I did are many. I love Montreal but I don't see myself moving back to a metropolis. The energy of the city just doesn't appeal to me at this stage of my life. I like the countryside, the rural life, and so does Leslie. Things seem to be happening the way they should.
It was surreal for me at times being back in Mile End but this time with a new person, Leslie, in my life. It was even stranger that the wool shop she wanted to see turned out to be just around the corner from where I last lived on the east Plateau. I must have walked by that shop hundreds of times without taking much notice of it. Things had this feeling of a strange disjuncture as I waited on the bench outside the store while Leslie perused the wool inside. I never would have imagined that events would unrole as they did all those times when I actually lived there.
One thing I didn't expect was that I along with the old feelings and memories I uncovered the fact that compared to now I had felt trapped living there. Trapped by my limited linguistic skills, lack of a social life and the general floating depression of living in the same neighbourhood as where my divorce took place. I was nuts to have stayed under that cloud for so long. The reasons I did are many. I love Montreal but I don't see myself moving back to a metropolis. The energy of the city just doesn't appeal to me at this stage of my life. I like the countryside, the rural life, and so does Leslie. Things seem to be happening the way they should.
8/26/2005
Montreal Bound
Leslie is no longer flying. Now she is preparing to board a bus to Montreal with me. We will be there around 5:30pm today. So much blogging to catch up on....
8/15/2005
Big Day
Tomorrow lovely Leslie arrives!! I can hardly believe it. We will spend a few days seeing Ottawa before we head out to the cottage. Then a little trip down to Guelph for Leslie's appointment before we return to the cottage/Ottawa for a night. Then it's Montreal bound back to Ottawa and hey wait... then it's over. I wish she would change her ticket and stay one more week, hint, hint.
8/13/2005
New Releases
I love how Korak finds these dada type of sites that randomly generate things. There was the random link site and the create your own comic site (whose links I lost when my Mac died) and now this Random Log Generator These are some of the new films you can lok forward to seeing if the studios will put them into development.
A lumberjack and a hard-living interior decorator discover an ancient burial ground.
A megalomaniac bison, a psychic-powered tycoon, and an idealistic preacher teach everyone a valuable lesson in a pub.
A homeless person gets a job as the gorgeous granddaughter of a game programmer in a fantasy world.
six odious homeless persons teach everyone a valuable lesson in bed.
A lumberjack and a hard-living interior decorator discover an ancient burial ground.
A megalomaniac bison, a psychic-powered tycoon, and an idealistic preacher teach everyone a valuable lesson in a pub.
A homeless person gets a job as the gorgeous granddaughter of a game programmer in a fantasy world.
six odious homeless persons teach everyone a valuable lesson in bed.
Jack's Scary Adventure
The veracity of the following tale is subject to inquiry. However all of the images were taken at Storyland Renfrew Ontario. All persons depicted are real.
It all started innocently enough. It was a Sunday afternoon and we went to Storyland while Grandma went shopping in Renfrew. We left the cottage and drove across the dam at Portage du Fort to the Ontario side. When we arrived our sunny Sunday mood seemed to change as we were greeted by the sight of two small dogs in a cage left in the parking lot under a tree...
Storyland is inhabited by fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters. It is a famliy tradition and I remember my own visits their as a child very well. Unfortunately one of the first things Jack did was to cross the line into the forbidden by stealing something from Red Riding Hood's basket.
We walked along the woodland trails and came to the animal farm. This goat approached us eager to be fed. We gave it some corn and for a moment the sky went dark as though a shadow passed overhead. It occurred to me at that moment, "Isn't the goat a sign of the devil?"
As we followed our map I saw something marked as the haunted village. haunted village? I don't recall any haunted village. As we walked we saw this horrid witch's face glaring at us from the trees. Thoughts of the 'Blair Witch' raced through my head as I assured young Jack that this was perfectly acceptable and expected.
Jack went along with my obvious hopeful wishing. He conceded to my fabrication, that is, until we saw skullface peering out from the dirt and leaves.
Nearby we saw an arrow shaped sign that said "Dungeon", which we followed only to encounter two poor children who clearly had been possessed by demons, locked in a cage. Then we heard a cackle and to our right we saw another hideous witch whose head spun unnaturally in circles. Jack lept back and gasped and we ran having no time to document the frightful hag.
Next we came upon a grove where a fetching sorceress lured Jack into her den with her seductive promises of storytelling. Jack stepped into her trap and sat enthralled as she related her tale of a misfit dragon while her eerie tree companion stared off into some world we cannot comprehend. Why oh why I asked myself did this poor creature have to have his limbs cut off? Something was not quite right.
Exhausted from our foray through haunted and enchanted woodlands Jack and I paused by a pond where a wizened figure offered us a ride on his magical paddle boat.This proved most relaxing except for the paddling and the shark and the giant wasp, not to forget the unforgiving brandishing of the cruel sun we received. Then came the wild hogs. They ran at us with the fury of hell-spawned demons only to stop short of mauling us to death to scratch their butts on the trees.
We made our escape down the cosmic wave slide, returning to our own dimension but this was hardly the end of our troubles and trauma.
The authorities awaited us on the other side and duly locked poor Jack up in the stockade where the villagers laughed and tossed old fruit at him. Thus it was and shall ever be.
It all started innocently enough. It was a Sunday afternoon and we went to Storyland while Grandma went shopping in Renfrew. We left the cottage and drove across the dam at Portage du Fort to the Ontario side. When we arrived our sunny Sunday mood seemed to change as we were greeted by the sight of two small dogs in a cage left in the parking lot under a tree...
Storyland is inhabited by fairy tale and nursery rhyme characters. It is a famliy tradition and I remember my own visits their as a child very well. Unfortunately one of the first things Jack did was to cross the line into the forbidden by stealing something from Red Riding Hood's basket.
We walked along the woodland trails and came to the animal farm. This goat approached us eager to be fed. We gave it some corn and for a moment the sky went dark as though a shadow passed overhead. It occurred to me at that moment, "Isn't the goat a sign of the devil?"
As we followed our map I saw something marked as the haunted village. haunted village? I don't recall any haunted village. As we walked we saw this horrid witch's face glaring at us from the trees. Thoughts of the 'Blair Witch' raced through my head as I assured young Jack that this was perfectly acceptable and expected.
Jack went along with my obvious hopeful wishing. He conceded to my fabrication, that is, until we saw skullface peering out from the dirt and leaves.
Nearby we saw an arrow shaped sign that said "Dungeon", which we followed only to encounter two poor children who clearly had been possessed by demons, locked in a cage. Then we heard a cackle and to our right we saw another hideous witch whose head spun unnaturally in circles. Jack lept back and gasped and we ran having no time to document the frightful hag.
Next we came upon a grove where a fetching sorceress lured Jack into her den with her seductive promises of storytelling. Jack stepped into her trap and sat enthralled as she related her tale of a misfit dragon while her eerie tree companion stared off into some world we cannot comprehend. Why oh why I asked myself did this poor creature have to have his limbs cut off? Something was not quite right.
Exhausted from our foray through haunted and enchanted woodlands Jack and I paused by a pond where a wizened figure offered us a ride on his magical paddle boat.This proved most relaxing except for the paddling and the shark and the giant wasp, not to forget the unforgiving brandishing of the cruel sun we received. Then came the wild hogs. They ran at us with the fury of hell-spawned demons only to stop short of mauling us to death to scratch their butts on the trees.
We made our escape down the cosmic wave slide, returning to our own dimension but this was hardly the end of our troubles and trauma.
The authorities awaited us on the other side and duly locked poor Jack up in the stockade where the villagers laughed and tossed old fruit at him. Thus it was and shall ever be.
Catching Up
It's been a busy summer and my blogging has petered out to a mere dribble. However that means it has also been a good summer. The hilight of course being my visit to Boulder in July. The rest of the time has been spent visiting family at the cottage swimming, reading, kayaking the good life. To top it all off Leslie will be here on Tuesday and be staying for two weeks. It seems like such a luxury to be able to spend time together. I look forward to the day when this will be a normal part ofour lives.
One nice thing about not having TV or internet for the last while is that I have not been digesting news. As a news junky this has had a very positive effect on me. However now that I am back in the stream of things the world looks scarier and more insane than ever.
Two news related things that caught my attention are the protesting mother outside Bush's ranch and the rejection by US authorities of the NAFTA softwood ruling against illegal US tariffs. From the first item I gather that the human face of a 'mother' of a dead soldier is making an impact in the media in the way that reasoned argument as to why the US went to Iraq never could. It seems that Bush's refusal to meet with her is rather powerful message. Q:"My son gave his life for your cause can I have an hour of your time?" A:"No."
As to the second item it probably isn't news in the US but it's the big story in Canada. There has been an ongoing dispute between the two nations concerning the legality of tariffs imposed by the US on Canadian softwood lumber exports. The US had imposed the tariffs stating that Canada was unfairly dumping it's softwood lumber on the American market. Canada took their complaint to the NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee and the tariffs were ruled to contavene the terms of NAFTA. In choosing to ignore the panel's ruling the US has undermined trade relations with Canada in terms of the trade agreement. In other words the rules and regulations as outlined in NAFTA are meaningless. It also undermines any good faith that Canada can expect in dealings with US trade in the future. What we have seen in action is the law of "might is right".
I see a relationship between the two items in that they both represent an attitude that has come to characterize the Bush administrations methods of negotiation. That is to say there is no negotiation. "Walk blindly and carry a big stick"
Yes I'm back rants and all.
One nice thing about not having TV or internet for the last while is that I have not been digesting news. As a news junky this has had a very positive effect on me. However now that I am back in the stream of things the world looks scarier and more insane than ever.
Two news related things that caught my attention are the protesting mother outside Bush's ranch and the rejection by US authorities of the NAFTA softwood ruling against illegal US tariffs. From the first item I gather that the human face of a 'mother' of a dead soldier is making an impact in the media in the way that reasoned argument as to why the US went to Iraq never could. It seems that Bush's refusal to meet with her is rather powerful message. Q:"My son gave his life for your cause can I have an hour of your time?" A:"No."
As to the second item it probably isn't news in the US but it's the big story in Canada. There has been an ongoing dispute between the two nations concerning the legality of tariffs imposed by the US on Canadian softwood lumber exports. The US had imposed the tariffs stating that Canada was unfairly dumping it's softwood lumber on the American market. Canada took their complaint to the NAFTA Extraordinary Challenge Committee and the tariffs were ruled to contavene the terms of NAFTA. In choosing to ignore the panel's ruling the US has undermined trade relations with Canada in terms of the trade agreement. In other words the rules and regulations as outlined in NAFTA are meaningless. It also undermines any good faith that Canada can expect in dealings with US trade in the future. What we have seen in action is the law of "might is right".
I see a relationship between the two items in that they both represent an attitude that has come to characterize the Bush administrations methods of negotiation. That is to say there is no negotiation. "Walk blindly and carry a big stick"
Yes I'm back rants and all.
