Let Freedom Ring...

In the lingering aftermath of 2010's Arab Spring and the current state of affairs in Turkey, it seems almost surreal to hear high school students in our school bemoaning their "caged and de-liberated" lives as the end of the school year approaches. And yet, moan they do. Mind you, it's not just the kids that are eyeing the exits with increasing anticipation. I guess when there is a perceived barrier, any freedom is deemed sweet.

Less than 75 years ago, the island of Newfoundland was an independent nation-state termed a "dominion" (which is, arguably, a step up from "colony") with its own flag, coat of arms, prime minister and CURRENCY. Becoming a province of Canada in 1949 was a coup for Canadians, a feather in the cap of first premier Joey Smallwood, and a point of contention for the 47.7% of the population who voted against confederation with Canada in 1948. As today's t-shirt (from my ever-generous Newfoundland family, Brian & Lori) demonstrates, Newfoundland's independent spirit and sense of humour (and entrepreneurism!) continues to thrive today.

For those who live in hope of true freedom - whether it's domestic, political, financial, global, or emotional - I offer up a little New Country prayer sung by Martina McBride in duet with special guest who knows better than anything that Love is a (fill-in-the-blank). ;)

Snail Mail 4 Realz

Letter writing is rapidly going the way of the dial-up modem... or the Dominion of Newfoundland, a country in its own right from 1907 to 1949, which included its own postage. As with all things Newfoundlander in my world, my shirt today was a gift from Brian and Lori (now of Paradise, NL)

The stamp on today's shirt was issued in 1941

In preparation for our wedding in May, I sent out invitations in advance of the prescribed six month margin because I didn't want to have our cards jumbled in (and possibly lost) with the Christmas mail rush. I have to admit that there was something very satisfying about addressing and stamping envelopes and stacking them neatly in readiness to be mailed. Furthermore, I made our invitations by hand, designing the functionality of the card myself so there was a lot of personal pride invested in the project. But once I mailed the little darlings, there was the WAITING. It was HORRIBLE. In our world of instantaneous response - text, Skype, email - waiting the week or longer for a response to an invitation is TORTUROUS.

And then, just when I thought everything was going so smoothly...

I went to the post office (well, the counter in the Shoppers Drug Mart really) to mail my very last batch of invitations last week because I had run out of stamps for invites going to the US and beyond. I had stamped one for the UK with the last of my stock but needed a stamp for another. The clerk at the counter looked at the one I had stamped and pointed out that I was short three cents on the postage. I stared at her blankly... I had mailed ALL the previous international invitations using stamps that had been living in my wallet for who knows how long. The fact that I hadn't heard from the recipients yet I had chalked up to them waiting to see if they'd be able to attend, get flights and accommodations, etc. It had never occurred to me that the cards would be stalled due to insufficient postage. But I hadn't gotten any back from Canada Post either. ARGH.

I sent out a few frantic emails to see if folks abroad had received their invitations but haven't heard back from the ones overseas. It appears that the US recipients have gotten theirs okay. So I'm giving it a few more days and then I'm sending out second invites in Christmas cards just to cover my bases. I plan on having far more ridiculous things on my mind in the new year.

All that being said, letter-writing (and receiving) is something we shouldn't lose. Penmanship is another. So my challenge to readers is to pick up a pen and paper today and write a note to someone, anyone. Buy the stamp (for sufficient postage), lick the envelope flap, mail the darned thing. It's a little like the whimsy of sending a message in a bottle ... with a better chance of a response. It also reminds us that some things don't need to be done RIGHT. THIS. INSTANT. that patience IS a virtue and that snapshot of a sentiment you send might catch someone off-guard in a happy way just when they need to hear it not when you needed to say it.

A Town By Any Other Name...

Fans of the Arrogant Worms know that Newfoundland has some of the most entertaining town names in the English-speaking world (the Welsh and German might contest a linguistically-generalized claim)

In my Grade 12 year, I won the Northern Saskatchewan Junior Achievement CanJAC award which sent me to Hamilton, Ontari-ari-o to represent Saskatoon & area at a national convention of young entrepreneurs and business people. I remember I shared a McMaster dorm room with a very pretty redheaded girl and a dorm floor with one of the speech finalists who was having a serious case of the nerves, pacing the halls and common room, muttering lines of her speech and gesticulating at a fast forward speed as she rehearsed for the final showdown.

I remember the night of the speech comp because I wore a similar outfit to the Asian girl who ended up winning the competition and spent a lot of the evening graciously accepting congrats and then explaining that it wasn't me they meant to congratulate.

Of all the great memories from that trip, meeting Brian Kidney from Mount Pearl, NL, was the most long-lasting as we maintain our friendship to this day. He had never heard of the Worms and thereby had no idea the song existed so as soon as I got home, I dubbed him a mix tape (!) of all the best Arrogant Worms' songs.

 

Now, today's shirt obviously came from Newfoundland. Brian and his wife Lori have sent me Newfie-loving shirts as birthday and/or Christmas gifties but (and I could be wrong) I think this one I bought for myself when I was visiting Mount Pearl for their wedding. (Crazy attack trees injuring the groom aside, it was a wonderful wedding). There's a obvious omission to maintain the shirt's "G" rating but it gets the point across. To put a finer point on said point, Brian and Lori and their burgeoning family are about to make the move to Paradise. Seriously awesome.

While on the East Coast topic, this past summer, Jeff's parents let him know that they'd be "gone camping" for a week or two. They often head out to the Rockies or down to Oregon for camping trips all through the summer months so this wasn't unusual. The email we got from NOVA SCOTIA the next week was. They'd decided to take their camping equipment and their VW Golf across the continent. It wasn't until after they'd left NL that we even knew they'd planned on ferrying over to The Rock. I love my in-laws-to-be. And they loved Blow Me Down Provincial Park, one of the few campsites they didn't get rained out of.

I've always felt very lucky to live in a country as large and diverse as Canada (which, btw, gets its name from the First Nations word for "village" or "settlement") and the idea of making my home anywhere else in the world is unfathomable but that doesn't mean I don't have a sense of humour about how a place name can sound to a newcomer. My father's favourite joke about Chilliwack (the town, not the band) was that, to find it, you needed to cross Hell's Gate and travel beyond Hope. And one of my favourite activities to give Social Studies classes is the BC Places Quiz because whether you're from a money river or the left side of a cantaloupe, you should know better than to roll a furry joint and take a cool hit without really knowing the world around you.