Oh, I know exactly how he feels.

And I think this cover letter is absolutely on-the-spot great. :p

Batteries

I'm sorry to report that my jogging doohickey gadget's radio just died. :( Now I need to replace two bug-sized batteries just so I can listen to CBC again while I run little circles.

Yes I Was Travelling.

I'm currently listening to this orchestral but hilarious History of Canada on CBC Radio One. Radio Two will be playing the program again.

Sunday June 11, 2006
From the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia
the CBC Radio Orchestra welcomes Canada's favourite storyteller, Stuart McLean - the
host of Vinyl Café - for a program of words and music
Stuart McLean, narrator
Mario Bernardi, conductor
CBC Radio Orchestra
Clifford Crawley: Overture on a Canadian Theme (or two)
Cameron Wilson & Stuart McLean: History of Canada
John Beckwith "Polka" from Music for Dancing
Cameron Wilson & Stuart McLean: I Remember Wayne (world premiere)

I went to Montreal this weekend, but it was a bit too hectic to do much. So you'll have to forgive me if I haven't called anyone nor posted. On the other hand, I witnessed PJ getting a nice suit. Finally!!! (We'll have pictures up when he comes by later next week.)

I'll have to take back that "Worst Onramp 3V4R" on the Quebec map that I commented on. I haven't driven very much throughout this city, just up to boonytown Valcartier and back. I avoided going on the highway, due to my complete disdain of Quebec drivers stemming from the funeral incident.

But I decided after having sufficient experience, I was ready to tackle the disgusting roadways of Quebec near the bridges. My mum had warned me that it was kind of crappy.



For the first time driving by myself, I actually thought I was going to die. There are stop signs on the onramps. Mysteriously appearing onramps. LOTS of mysteriously appearing onramps. And then a really weird curve in the road. With an onramp on both sides mysteriously appearing. LOOK.

If the highways look like spaghetti to you, that should explain why Quebec drivers are completely insane.

Impending Death and the Subconscious Mind

News of the Pope's rapidly deteriorating health had been circulating for at least a month. But being "not catholic," it didn't strike me as something of a great spiritual crisis. We all know the guy's a gajillion years old (since everyone tends to poke fun at that, including me) and suffered from a series of ailments over the many years, including Parkinson's.

Today, as I was trying to avoid the chaos of April Fool's pranks that bombarded me in my science class, I felt an incredible wave of sadness. Perhaps it was the weather - the sombre grey of a much too-familiar winter that cast its gloom through the windows. Perhaps it was the moody rain that suddenly transformed into great globs of snowflakes, then mysteriously melted into another spell of rain. Or maybe just because it's Friday. Whatever the case, I thought it was because I was feeling like my usual incompetent self.

When I arrived home and turned on the television set (to watch my daily 3 Simpsons reruns, one in French and two in English), the channel was set to CBC Newsworld. News droned on and on about the Pope and his rapidly ailing self. The story had been all over the school in the last few days, due to our irish (and/or catholic) foundation of teachers and the predominant fear of death that haunts our students, whose parents of the military sort would go on duty for extended periods of time to uncertain areas of the world.

It unnerves the mind when one hears about the fading health or death of a popular and prominent figure of the world. The bit with Mother Theresa was like that briefly, except for the fact that her death was overshadowed by the death of a member of the british royal family, whats-her-name. This time around, it is the story of a man who is dying. Slowly but surely dying.

A medical corespondent started speaking about the most current status of his health. At the moment, she said that he was going through septic shock, which is the point where blood is not reaching the organs thus shutting down the whole body. It then reminded me of the very moment, almost two years ago now, when the doctors at the wretched hospital spewed forth their report on how there was nothing to be done about my father.

Lo and behold, the whole day connected. My heart and my mind agreed upon the feelings were caused by the "spiritual father"'s dying reminding me of my own father's dying. The wave after wave of teary-eyed people on television telling reporters what they were feeling then made sense.

As I write, the pope is dying, probably in some physical pain (but might be numbed from drugs?) or unconscious. Perhaps he's in the deep sleep stage, where no one can follow. I hope that the pope will "walk slowly."

My father... I think that if one has travelled this far, and one has done all one can, one should just let go. So we pulled his respirator and let his heart keep going...

And that is the moment when we look to religion to find answers, or to find comfort, or just to feel something.