Our American Cousins

Today, for the first time -- ever -- Canadians will require a passport before they can enter the United States. Most Canadian cities, including Vancouver, are so close to the border, that we are used to just "popping over" to do some shopping, or take a Sunday drive. We could drive through the border so easily, it was as if Canada and the US were the same country. On my 27th birthday my friends threw a surprise party for me at a fabulous little tavern in Washington State called -- appropriately -- Jo's Place. I will always remember that birthday because, since my birthday is two days after Christmas, it was the only time in my adult life that anyone had ever thrown a birthday party for me, much less a surprise party.

Going to the US was referred to as "going across the line". Sunday shopping was a frequent pastime of all of my friends.

"I love your shoes! Where did you get them?"

"Oh, in a little store across the line."

Now we are two separate countries, and it feels rather strange. The "longest undefended border" in the world has now slammed its doors shut on its Canadian cousins. Well, I don't have a Canadian passport, since mine has long-expired, so I won't be going to the US anytime soon. I will look across the border, but I will have to spend my money here in Canada.

Nightmares of Arithmetic

When I was a little girl, I was a rather plump little thing. I had two older brothers who spoiled me and were always buying me Crispy Crunch chocolate bars. You can buy them only in Canada, and they are still my favorite. I try to avoid them, however. Later, when I was in my teens, I became almost anorexic. I was too busy to eat. I was always very active when I was a child -- swimming, ice skating, bike riding, hop scotch, skipping, hiking ... Home was just a place to hang my coat in between activities. But still, I was never what anyone would call skinny. When I was in grade four, I had a teacher by the name of Mr. William Foster. Mr. Foster was mean, he was cruel, and he was ignorant. He was not only a teacher, he was a pastor in an evangelical church, so there was no excuse for him to be mean, cruel and ignorant. He was always hitting the little boys for no reason, and I once caught him with his hand up a little girl's skirt. He was not a nice man, but we were taught to respect our elders. Teachers, parents, ministers, their word was law, and we did not question them. They were the big people.

The other night I had a dream -- a memory really -- about an awful incident that happened to me when Mr. Foster was giving us an arithmetic lesson. We were learning about multiplication, division, and reduction. He called me up to the front of the class and explained about reducing fractions. He then turned to me and said to the class, "Some numbers cannot be reduced at all -- unlike Johanna here, who could reduce by about five pounds." I remember the feeling of tears welling up in my eyes, and my face turning red. I went to sit down, and Mr. Foster said to me, "Wait, I am not finished with you yet..." So, I stood there while he went on to explain about reducing fractions for what seemed like an eternity. When I finally sat down, my friends were very kind and sympathetic to me. One little boy named Jimmy hugged me. Years later Jimmy and I worked together in our first after-school job in high school, and we practiced our high school French as we worked. I would say, "Merci beaucoup" to him, and he always called me "Little Beaucoups".

I was never what anyone could call a "bad little girl". I had lots of friends, I liked everyone; there was no reason for Mr. Foster to single me out like that. I had always treated him with respect. Why did he do it? I will never know. What causes someone to be cruel to other people -- especially to a child?

I had forgotten about this incident until my dream the other night, and it felt as painful as it did when it happened. Even to this day, I have a phobia about arithmetic. But, as I go through life, no matter what faults I have, I will never be unkind to people. Perhaps I did learn something from Mr. Foster, after all.

RMS Titanic

This is the last photograph of Titanic, prior to its sinking, taken as it was sailing out of Queenstown, Ireland, and into history and eventual doom, April 11th, 1912 @ 1:32pm.

I have always been fascinated by the Titanic. The other night as I was flipping around the channels looking for something to watch, I came upon an amazing program on the Knowledge Network, called “The Man Who Found the Titanic”, and it was the story of Dr. Robert Ballard, the marine archaeologist who found the debris field of the Titanic. The story of how the Titanic was found is interesting, involving the Cold War and the U.S. Navy's search for two Navy nuclear powered submarines, the USS Scorpion and the USS Thresher, both of which sank in the 1960s.

Dr. Ballard approached the Navy about his new deep sea underwater robot craft, the Argo, and his search for the Titanic. The Navy however was not interested in spending a large sum of money in searching for the large ocean liner, but they were however, very interested in finding out what happened to their missing submarines and ultimately concluded that the Argo was their best chance to do so. In an agreement made with the Ballard, the Navy would finance Ballard's Titanic search only if he first searched for and investigated the two sunken submarines, and examined the state of their nuclear reactors after being submerged for such a long period of time to see if their radioactivity was impacting the environment. Ballard would be placed into temporary active duty in the Navy and in charge of finding and investigating the wrecks. After the two missions were completed, and if time and funding were permitting, Ballard would be free to use the resources to hunt for Titanic.

Ballard understood the ocean currents would create trails of debris that would make it easier to find the submarines rather than searching for the hulls. Following each of the submarines' large trails of debris led Ballard and his team directly to them. He knew, as well, that the Titanic had probably imploded from pressure depth, much the same way the two submarines had, and concluded that it too had left a trail of debris. Ballard and his team used Argo to sweep back and forth across the ocean floor looking for Titanic's debris trail. The team took shifts monitoring the video feed from Argo as it searched the ocean floor two miles below. ... The Knowledge Network.

On September 1, 1985, Dr. Robert Ballard found the Titanic.

Even by today’s standards, the Titanic was luxurious. Items and artifacts from the Titanic are at a premium, because of the mystique of the ship, and the opulence of the furnishings. In many ways, Dr. Ballard regretted locating the ship because in the years since 1985, Titanic has been pillaged, and in fact more damage has been done to her from artifact hunters than from the erosion of the Atlantic Ocean. He also believes that the location is sacred ground because so many men, women and children lost their lives there. He says when he visits the wreckage, he can still feel their spirits.

The story of the Titanic is one that will always fascinate people, and I think as long as the artifacts are regarded with the proper reverence, people should be permitted to view that important part of maritime history.

Here is a bit of Titanic trivia. Titanic had four smoke stacks, but only three of them were operational. The fourth stack was added to balance the lines of the ship, and make the other smoke stacks not look out of place. Without the fourth stack towards the back, she would have looked top-heavy. The fourth smoke stack served as air ventilation.

Do Blondes Have More Fun...?

Apparently blondes do not have more fun. After 68 years of “playing the field” with both Veronica and Betty, Archie has finally decided to propose – to Veronica. Archie will get down on bended knee to present Veronica with his marriage proposal and a ring. Veronica will accept Archie's proposal while poor Betty looks on and wipes away a tear. The message boards at ArchieComics.com have been filling up with messages saying Betty should receive Archie’s proposal of marriage, rather than the snooty Veronica. One fan wrote, “I hope it's Betty! I've read these comics for over 30 years and waited for the day he woke up and chose Betty.”

Someone named Rob wrote, “I think he should ask Betty. Veronica is too sophisticated and too richy rich for him. Betty is very laid back, sort of like the All American Girl she has always been. Betty has a big heart, she would make a great wife to Arch, and I would be disappointed if Archie chose Veronica! Good luck to Archie.”

One commenter by the name of “archielover,” wrote: “OMG! Pick Veronica! He doesn't deserve Betty, he always makes her do all his chores and fix his car and help with his homework, while he treats Veronica like a little princess! I can't wait to see what happens.”

I think Veronica should marry Reggie. They’re perfect for each other. And in a perfect world, Jughead will end up being a wealthy entrepreneur and will marry Betty. They'll have wonderful fun together and he'll make her laugh. Archie will be the lone single guy everyone invites over for dinner and tries to fix up with their loser cousins friends. I mean, my goodness, anyone who vacillates for 68 years...!

L'Eggo My Eggo...

For me, the ultimate, ne plus ultra comfort food is anything made with waffles. When I feel I just have to nosh on something, waffles will do the trick every time. There are about a million things you can make with waffles, and all of them are scrumptious. They make wonderful desserts as well, with berries, icing sugar and ice cream, and maybe some chocolate or caramel sauce. Yum.

Waffles are really easy to make, and I still have my mother and father's waffle iron. I remember my father making waffles on Sunday mornings, with real Canadian maple syrup and his wonderful coffee. The waffles never looked as tidy as they do in this photograph, however. There was waffle batter spilling over the sides, and sticking to everything. That was my favorite part -- what I used to call the "scrumbly bits". My least favorite part was having to wash the waffle iron afterwards, which of course was always my job. Now I understand why.

Anyway ... I have promised that my blog would be a "recipe free" zone, mainly because all your recipes are so much more wonderful than mine -- but I just have to share with you a recipe I discovered invented that is so good, you have to try it. If you don't want to go to the fuss of making "real" waffles, Eggo makes really good "store-bought" waffles. Anyway, make (or buy) a cinnamon waffle with raisins, cover it with thick slices of old, old, old brick cheddar cheese, and put it in the oven at about 425 degrees until the cheddar cheese melts and gets a bit bubbly and crispy. You'll know by looking at it. When you take it out of the oven, sprinkle it with with cracked pepper. The combination of sweet waffle, tart aged cheese, and peppery pepper will make your taste buds do the dance of joy. I know it sounds really peculiar, but the Munchkins love it when I make this for them. It's really good with an ice cold beer. (Don't serve that to your Munchkins, however...)

"Try it, you'll like it.."

So ... what strange food combinations do you enjoy?

The Boy In The Striped Pajamas

I just watched the most amazing movie about two little eight year-old boys, Bruno and Schmuel -- one the son of the commandant of a German concentration camp, the other a prisoner in the camp. The horrors of the Holocaust are seen through the innocence and simplicity of their eight year-old eyes, as they form a friendship through the barbed wire fence surrounding the camp, and as we watch the trust they build in each other, we are reminded that we are all the same. So, here we are all these years later, and people are still doing the same things to each other -- the Palestinian and Israeli war; the civil war in Darfur; the war in Afghanistan; the Iraq war. People never seem to learn, do they?

I’m not going to say anything more about the movie, except to say if you haven’t seen it yet, you should watch it. It’s a thing of beauty from start to finish. The movie won several awards, including the audience choice award at the Chicago Film Festival. The two little boys who play Bruno and Schmuel are just delightful, but be prepared -- you will fall in love with them.

The movie is based on a book written by John Boyne. He had originally written the book as a children’s book, but it is definitely not for children.

Every once in a while I will watch a movie that is so good, I immediately want to watch it again. This movie is one of those movies. And yes, they all speak with "plummy" British accents, but I would rather hear that than listening to them speaking English with phony German accents.

The Gambler

I am feeling just a wee bit under the weather today, so I hope you will forgive me if I don't have the chance to answer all your wonderful comments, or visit you today. Ever since I was a teenager, I have had what is known as atrial fibrillation. I can go for months or even years without any episodes, and then suddenly it will act up again. For some peculiar reason, it was at its worst when I was in my 20s. Sometimes it is related to stress, and often it is related to something I might have eaten. Yesterday I had a very strong cup of coffee, et voila! that set it off. I have had a couple of other stressors in my life too, but nothing major. Today I'm fine (well, that's a relative term, isn't it?) albeit a bit sleepy.

Life is a gamble, anyway, don't you think? We can't avoid stress, or any of the other things that might happen to us, including all the wonderful things. The minute we get out of bed in the morning and set our feet on the floor, we take chances -- but that is the joy of life, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I hope today is a wonderful day for you. You deserve it.

You got to know when to hold em, know when to fold em,
Know when to walk away and know when to run.
You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table.
There'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.

Divine Punishment

This is something that perhaps only women can fully appreciate -- but I think there should be a special place in the ninth circle of h*ll for people who piddle on the toilet seat and don't wipe it up after themselves. Also, if I could, I would create a tenth circle in h*ll for folks who sit down beside me on the bus and proceed to sneeze and sneeze and sneeze -- and cough -- and sneeze ... sans Kleenex. And while I'm at it -- special punishment should be reserved for people who enthusiastically dig the sleep out of their eyes, or the wax out of their ears, and then stick their hand into the shared cookie tin at work. And finally, there is no punishment in the ninth circle of h*ll severe enough for people who blow their nose at the lunch table and then place the well-used Kleenex in the middle of the table for everyone else to enjoy. You don't do any of these things -- do you?!

When they arrive before the precipice,
There are the shrieks, the plaints, and the laments,
There they blaspheme the puissance divine.

I understood that unto such a torment
The carnal malefactors were condemned,
Who reason subjugate to appetite.

Inferno, Canto V ... Dante Alighieri

Oh, I am wicked...

The Gift Of Life

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine last night, about life. Well, to be more specific, we were talking about the gift of life each living creature has been given. If you really think about the overwhelming odds against life anywhere in the universe, the gift of life is one that is truly extraordinary.

No one knows if the universe is infinitely large, or even if ours is the only universe there is. Although our view of the universe is limited, our imaginations are not. Astronomers have indirect evidence that the universe of galaxies extends far beyond the region we can see. But no one knows if the whole universe is infinitely large - large beyond limit.

... NASA

There are folks who subscribe to the theory of God creating life, breathing life into Adam and Eve; and there are folks who believe life was purely an accidental lab experiment in a primordial soup. And there are people like me who think the truth may be somewhere in between. I like to believe there is a life force in the universe, a Higher Power, as it were. Wouldn't it be too awful to consider, if life on Earth were the only life in the Universe, and we were created by accident? Whatever (or whomever) created life, the very fact of it is a miracle, and each of us has been given this miraculous gift.

It didn't occur to me until my conversation with my friend last night, that most of us don't appreciate the extraordinary gift we have been given. Whether by accident or design, we have been the lucky ones -- the chosen ones -- each and every one of us. As we go about our day-to-day lives, how often do we consider the fact that we have been granted a miracle. How many people are truly happy, every day? We spend so much of our time just taking care of the business of living, do we ever stop, take a deep breath and just think that the very fact that we are here is amazing. I know that is often difficult to do, most of us have so much to worry about. Get a job, earn enough to keep ourselves and our families in food, clothing, a roof over our heads -- perhaps enough money left over for hobbies, sports, vacations. We let the commonplace events of our lives rule our emotions, and sometimes that makes us afraid to live. I am as guilty of that as anyone. I work with people who are so stressed over the most trivial matters, they are ruining their health. They have created a microcosm of a world around them that they feel is eminently important, and they rush around to and fro, to and fro, making themselves ill. "What would this office do without me?" Well, it would go on as it always has, just fine.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”

... Mahatma Gandhi

My friend with whom I had the conversation last night is concerned because she feels she is nearing the end of her life. No one knows that for sure. All we really have is today. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow has not happened yet. We should learn to savor the moment, to enjoy the "today" of our lives.

“Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.”

... Dr. Seuss

And now I am going to sit down and enjoy (savor) a Lindt Excellence Dark Chocolate Orange Intense chocolate bar -- just because -- it's a miracle.

Cold And Hot Sex

After examining the elderly gentleman, the doctor said to him, "You appear to be in good health. Do you have any medical concerns you would like to ask me about?"

"In fact, I do," said the old man. "After I have sex with my wife, I am usually cold and chilly; and then, after I have sex with her the second time, I am usually hot and sweaty."

After examining the man's elderly wife, the doctor said to her, "Everything appears to be fine. Do you have any medical concerns that you would like to discuss with me?"

The lady replied that she had no questions or concerns. The doctor then said to her, "Your husband had an unusual concern. He claims that he is usually cold and chilly after having sex with you the first time; and then hot and sweaty after the second time. Do you know why?"

"Oh, that crazy old fart!" she replied. "That's because the first time is usually in January, and the second time is in August."