August 2008 Archives

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It's been literally years since I last went golfing. But I had the opportunity to hit the course again in Vernon over the weekend. Despite a fair bit of apprehension, I had a good time out there, though I could really use some quality time at a driving range before I would be willing to pick up another club in the light of day. The course was thankfully by far the shortest I have ever played, where each hole was somewhere between 60 and 110 yards long or so. The course was built on the side of a small mountain, you could say, so it's quite a hike, but has very scenic views...

I was out there celebrating the wedding of a good friend of mine, in what was my big vacation of the summer. Vernon was truly gorgeous, and I regret not having gone out there earlier. The weather was thankfully perfect, and the wedding went off a hitch (thought there were of course a few minor glitches). The only problem with that weekend is that it was way too short for what is an exceptionally long drive (we spent about 20 hours on the road for the four day weekend). But I have to say, it was even better than I thought it might be running into a lot of friends that I hadn't seen for years. I attacked that weekend. So many friends that I will not see again...

It's one of those times that generates more flux than usual. I am in a position where once again I need to make many long term structural changes, at the same time that many other people do. This, though painful, is perhaps for the best, as it is far too easy to try to seize the familiar. I just celebrated my 24th year, and married off my good friend. Though I attempted vainly, it is difficult to suppress the natural thoughts that bubble to the surface. Namely, what am I doing, exactly? That's a question that's difficult to answer. Years of teenage angst give way to confusion and wandering. It seems that I am not alone in this either, as I watch films like Garden State...

I guess I am looking for my "personal legend", as Paulo Coelho might call it.

August has turned out to be Slavic literature month as I run the Miroslav Volf's "The End of Memory" and Tolstoy's masterpiece on the adulterous woman "Anna Karenina". More to follow as I run through them.

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I spent the most recent weekend at the Heritage days in Edmonton, which is an annual event up here. They take one of the larger city parks, shut it down, and then host dozens of different ethnic and cultural groups. Each will generally have kind of an informational area, some presentations (often dancing), and then the food tents. It's a great opportunity to wander through and have foods or hear music that you really would never hear in the course of a normal year. I took advantage of the opportunity to try some Russian Kvas, some Turkish coffee, and many many more very odd foods. Broodje Haring for the non-Dutch among you is a bun with salted herring and a lot of onions. It sounds a little weird, perhaps, but tastes delicious. I was quite disappointed that the Peruvian tent ran out of Inca Cola.

In the picture above, they are playing panpipes, and other traditional South American instruments. Pretty neat really, I almost bought one of their CD's, but they're $20 a piece, and I didn't have that much cash on me. In any case, it's an all around pleasant way to spent a weekend and one of the better festivals in town for me. This coming weekend is the Edmonton Folk Festival, which I am tempted to go to, but these things aren't cheap, and I think Folk Fest is about $35 a day. Still, I am a pretty big fan of folk music, so maybe I'll still make it there.

I am reading Tête-à-Tête right now about Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. It's a fascinating book, as I had no idea about any of the personal circumstances surrounding the writing of some of his more famous works, like Being and Nothingness and Ethics. Perhaps more on that once I have finished reading it.