Update

Fancy title, eh?

Anyway, I didn't get the job. My friend Des is back and has had a wonderful three weeks, even meeting folks like Noam Chomsky and Michael Albert (a very nice man apparently, though I still think that Parecon is dreadful). She'll bring a lot of information and stories back with her. She's also met a man she loves, and also had many happy love affairs (she is quite openly polyamorous) while away. It's good to see that life has been good to her. I am envious.

I'm not in a garrulous mood right now.

I'll post something that I wrote for an acquaintance though, a couple days ago. You'll probably find it a bit dull. It's my 'blog, though, and I thought it was funny. It's good exercise for me in any event.


The horror of that day I shan't soon forget. I felt odd and out of sorts for most of today. Work went well, but I still felt weird. Even my nap didn't make me feel better. Myexistential quandaries, my long dark tea time of the human heart, myown little death (and not in the French sense) of the soul.

All right, I exaggerate and I digress. I pour forth a pitcher of saltwater when, in truth, a damp eye and a half sigh might suffice. I am the man-queen of drama and hyperbolic excess.


Anyway, after my nap I shuffled over to my machine. I had things to do. It made me feel sad. I was screwed, thought I.I was informed that, while napping, a chequehad been left for me. I still felt sad. So I wrote an announcement, felt better. I went and medicated myself with food (ice cream). I felt even better. I put on Alanis Morrissette's third CD (not counting her short teen career as Alanis) and set to workcatching up on the emails that I needed to send, the articles that Ineed to write, and making necessary telephone calls. Me and Alanisgot a lot done, let me tell you. Alanis made me feel so happy,Jessie. It was like having... Well anyway, I felt a lot better.


The sun was also coming out. Everything started seeming brighter.Alanis even got kind of cheerful, as the CD progressed. So the CD ended (so sad!), and I polished off the article. It was around quarter to 8pm.


I went for a walk to Saskatchewan Drive, to amble along the edge ofthe River Valley. The sun was streaming. It was illuminating thetrees. I stopped periodically to smell the odd lilac bush that wasstill flowering. I wandered over to my favourite place to sit andtake in the view, and ponder my life. I thought about a lot ofthings, mulled them over. I thought about you. I heard a dog andowner walking toward me. I kind of felt annoyed. I like dogs, but I didn't want to be distracted. So, as I turn my head to see the sourceof my interruption, it was Raj Pannu and his miniature poodle. I said a rather subdued hello, he responded in kind, peering over the wooden railing. I got up and peered over the railing too, kind of hopingthat he'd leave, since I didn't know what to say. He didn't seem toknow either. It must be hard, seeing a big name like me on a random stroll. KQM always wants me to sign something, for her partner. Des and Nick always do the same thing, and my housemates. It's embarrassing. I'm sure you know what I mean, too, since you probably get that as well, gentle reader.

Or maybe Raj thought that I was Matthew Broderick, wearing a beard like.


Anyway, I gave up waiting, and walked past him. His dog followed afew feet, said hi to me and I petted it. It was a dirt under the fingernails poodle. Pannu may be a manicured man, but his dog tellsme he's a working class guy at heart. Raj continued looking stoicallyinto the Valley. I grinned, and left.

So onward my walk went. I stopped and picked a daisy, twirling it in my hands. I felt guilty, because it's a living thing, and very beautiful.

I walked to the other side of the bridge, then turned around andwalked back. It was then that I met...

GOLIATH!

Goliath was a fine fellow, a pit bull off his leash. He decided tovisit me. He had a big waggeldy tail, and was oscillating between saying hi and growling at me. Deciding that of valour discretion is the better part, I hung back from him. Tail still wagging, he growled more. His owners came on the scene, calling for him. He bounded off. He was having a great time, and nobody was putting him back on the leash. He ran up to someone else and said hello. This guy was probably more scared than I was (he hid his hands in his shirt), but he ran up sniffed him and then ran back, eluding his owners. He ran up to me again, more friendly. I put out my hand and he ran up to it,sniffed me, and licked my hand. When I offered to pet him, he ran away.

Eventually, the owners convinced him to come, and got him back on the leash. They apologized but, really, it was no problem.

I do have strong feelings about keeping dogs like pit bulls on a leashat all times (they're often nice dogs, but they have powerful jaws),and even muzzling them in public, but he was a friendly dog.

So that was the end of my encounter with Goliath. I almost got lostfinding the staircase again, but came back up, walking along and stopping periodically to look at new ways the landscape was being transformed by light.