coming up for a spot of air in pleasant valley...

it's been a manic few weeks in and out of pleasant valley...

I sincerely apologize (once again), for my lack of posts of late - it's been one helluva ride these past few weeks, and it all began with my after-shocks of Toronto, and a resettling into valley life, only to have the world go 'pear shaped' once again.

I'll begin with the sad news: my great uncle Harold passed away on May 30th. He was 85, suffered from Alzheimer's for a decade, but left behind a tremendous legacy, as was evidenced by the incredible family gathering at his funeral last week. He was one of 7 siblings, my maternal grandfather's brother on the Irish side, so needless to say an Irish funeral is not simply a sad affair. The massive amount of relatives combined with a generous amount of food and drink were the right ingredients for our version of an Irish wake - and although I had to leave before the night was through, I was told the dishes were washed to the karaoke soundtrack of "Stars on 45" (a disco staple). You can't keep a good family down. And it truly was incredible to reconnect with so many relatives, far-flung across the country, many of them now living out west; I left the funeral with a promise of a train-trip out West next summer - something I've never done, and which promises to be an amazing adventure.

Just before Harold's passing my good friend Ed descended upon Pleasant Valley to shoot a portion of a documentary; landing on Sunday and leaving on Tuesday afternoon, his visit prompted two fabulous nights on the town, and I've now rediscovered the Pleasant Valley market - and actually remember most of the places we ended up imbibing. It was pure patio weather, although the threat of thunderstorms loomed overhead (but NEVER materialized, thank God!), and we wended our way through the Byward Market, adding and subtracting to our group at various stops along the way. It was such a perfect antidote to my post Toronto PV doubtfest, and though I did suffer the short-term effects of staying up way past my bedtime (a 6am wake-up time never felt so brutal), it was restorative in another, much deeper, way. Although I am still trying to find my niche in the valley, I've found myself less and less prone to fits of urban superiority - which, I think, is progress.

Most recently (you notice how for me time isn't so linear these days?), I spent 2.5 days on a staff retreat in Gananoque, at a fabulously low-key resort on the St. Lawrence. I'm not entirely at liberty to discuss all the after-hours adventures (nothing too dirty, I promise!), but you can see from the picture above (taken on the drive to the resort), what the tone of the time probably was; I leave the goings-on to your imagination...

I realize more and more that my move from Toronto has been driven by a yearning for all the other spaces I had almost forgot were out there. Spending time with good friends during this retreat (who are also coworkers - a rare gift of fortunate circumstance!), many of them friends I left behind in Toronto, in such a fine and relaxing location, with none of the usual distractions that cut shared time short, was another powerful antidote to some of my post-urban angst. Perhaps I'm over-focused on this little angst of mine, but without a 'smoking-gun' political situation to harp on about (although there is another round of confidence votes next week!) I've become a touch introverted in my valley surroundings.

And why not? Two parties and a funeral (or three parties if you count the funeral) have to pluck some existential strings, don't they? I would worry if they didn't.

Now I'm looking ahead to the rest of the month - no less than 2 more rounds of visitors from Toronto before the main valley event of the season (Canada Day, for those who needed it spelled out), and apart from record smog levels and a humidex rating that makes it feel like 37 degrees outside, I'm feeling just fine in the valley, thank you very much.

So yes, I'm back after a lot of life crammed into three weeks, taking in a spot of smoggy and overly-humid air, and looking forward to nothing more than whatever happens next...