I want to be a better writer. More clear and articulate. More thoughtful. More interesting. Concise but expansive. This takes practice. And reflection. And time.
Always it’s time. Like most people I am pulled into that contradictory dynamic of wanting more free personal time but also wanting to remain in motion and broaden experiences. Spend money now and have a ton of fun, or save money to create options in the future.
There are travelers and settlers. I’ve always been a traveler and a nomad. Time disappears quickly when we are in motion.
Maybe now is a good time to start thinking about dialing it back a little and remembering how to live creatively in books or within my own mind. I was raised pretty damn poor so that life is not foreign to me. Millions of imaginative people have lived fully creative lives without leaving their neighborhood.
Living a mundane life feels like death to me. And most people I know are living pretty damn mundane lives. Or at least it seems that way to me. Maybe I am judging too harshly or simply invoking my ideals against their lives which may be completely satisfying to them. My oldest sister never leaves her couch and seems sorta okay with it.
I am spoiled like most of us are these days. No real remembrance of seriously hard times like pretty much every generation before us.
For whatever reason, I am feeling like change. Reducing financial pressures and re-learning enjoyment from quiet times. Maybe start a rescue farm where I can get daily therapy from hugging horses and goats and cows and pigs.
Last weekend the boys and I rode motorcycles around southern West Virginia. We all had Bikers for Harris shirts and had an amazing day in the saddle. Really beautiful long slow ride through the colorful forests and hills before heading home for a lovely dinner by the fire. Nice weekend for sure.
We are in Toronto now, enjoying the Fall weekend. Thursday night we took a late drive to Niagara Falls and spent the night there. We got in 90 minutes later than necessary after I manufactured a little drama. I had completely forgot about my passport. So when I picked up Brittany at her house, and she asked me about it, I realized my mistake. Or did I?
We drove the extra hour and a half to get it from my house but when we get got there I could not find the damn thing. Turned out it was in the computer bag I already had in the car so we had it the whole time. But we were casual. Just one of those things.
Friday morning we had a lovely brisk walk around the falls and then after a few on-line meetings we drove on into Toronto.
After getting settled into our hotel we had terrific light lunch and a couple of beers at a very nice Italian restaurant nearby. Later, a long walk followed by a little lounging around the hotel, and then a terrific dinner at an old-school steakhouse called Barberian’s. It is on Elm Street and if I am back in Toronto will likely visit again.
Lovely place with a great bartender. Old, dark wood paneling and very cozy layout. Coat check lady as you walk in the door. Seemed like the kind of place where Canadian mafia would gather to plot murdering their enemies while enjoying a nice steak and good red wine.
We were lucky to get seats at the bar, which is our way, and were well served and entertained. I had my normal martini and then escargot and a steak followed by a nice beignet dessert, espresso, and scotch. Then we walked back to the hotel and did the New Yorker crossword puzzle in bed.
This place was so old-school they did not even have a POS. The bartender took our order on a post it note and then presented us with a hand-written bill on a form provided by Evan Williams. Very quaint. We drank it in. It feels a little like cheating life when we can enjoy the most basic experiences, like sharing a meal, in such a beautiful and thoughtful environment.
This morning was sunny and beautiful and we took a long walk to Hemingway’s on Cumberland Street for brunch and to watch England and New Zealand rugby. We had a lovely meal and 3 or 4 pints of Guinness (mimosas for Brittany). Brittany is very good to indulge my love of rugby and cigars.
On the walk home we came upon a parade of Chinese protesting the Communist Government. They were very organized and handed us all kinds of literature which we were kind enough to only throw away after we were out of sight. We were interviewed by a couple of independent journalists about our views on the Communist party. What are you going to say? Of course the Communist Party sucks. Of course they are horrible abusers of human rights. What are we going to do about it? Nothing? What can we do? I’m consumed with anxiety about the possibility of the Republican Party being in charge of all 3 branches of our government. I am voting for Kamala. That’s what I’m doing. What more can I do?
Lest we forget our own government has a pretty poor track record when it comes to human rights especially with people of color and women.
A few minutes after being reminded of the atrocities in China we came upon a good sized protest of Israel’s war against Palestine and Lebanon just outside the US embassy.
Next to the protest was a large black Suburban with some kind of electronics gear and cameras on top and it was parked right beside one of those big maintenance vans that are always used in spy movies to hold even more surveillance equipment. On a busy city street on a Saturday afternoon. Not the least bit subtle. I fully expected someone to exit the vehicle and confiscate my phone simply for taking a picture.
We watched and empathized on behalf of the Palestinians for a while and then walked the rest of the way back to our hotel. The world is a terrifying and complicated and terribly sad place. And we are for the most part powerless pawns. Are we not?
The scariest Halloween decorations I’ve seen this year are all the Trump signs on people’s houses. Terrifying to think of this monster being enabled with power again — this time with less constraints and a seemingly endless capacity for hate and revenge.
Tomorrow we will walk the city again for a bit and then get over to the arena to see Bruce Springsteen. I’ve been prepping Brittany for a while — getting her hyped up for the energy and emotion of The Boss live. And for having to witness me crying. No way to stop that.
I’m all over the election. Time for chips to fall I guess.
Humbly Submitted
Robert Myres – Flanker (ret.), Portneuf Valley Rugby Football Club
The Martini Tales 