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Fantasia 2012: Black Pond (2011)
So, it’s time for my first movie review of Fantasia 2012. Yesterday I saw a very enjoyable and quirky film called Black Pond. It’s a British movie from a new director Tom Kingsley, about a family who have a stranger to dinner, who promptly drops dead at their table.
Read MoreMy first fishing trip
Learning to fish
On Saturday, I went to the lovely lakeside village of Chambly, Quebec, with my friend Andrei and his wife Gabi, and for the first time in my life I tried my hand at fishing. I’m not sure why I’ve never tried it, but I really took to it.. It’s relaxing, exciting, and downright enjoyable. I will definitely be doing it again!
I’ve written a few words to try and capture my experience:
Fishing
Eager; I’m going fishing!
Overwhelmed; This rod seems complicated.
Relieved; Casting is easier than I thought.
Confused; Too much line, tangles, aargh.
Determined; I can figure this out.
Unafraid; It’s starting to make sense.
Surprised; A tug on the line…
The English des Québécois
Next Cash Please
Since I moved here three years ago, I’ve been intrigued to listen to the way Montréalers speak. I’ve previously written about my experiences living in a bilingual city, and the bizarre experience of conversations switching back and forth between languages effortlessly.
As a settled Montrealer, having grown in confidence and ability with my French, I find myself doing it too, especially since I started my current job – where the staff are mostly francophones but the business is mostly in English. Most of my daily conversations involve a hybrid of French and English to some degree.
But what I find quite unique is the experience of being in a linguistic minority.
Read MoreThe Liberation of Separation
“Find a girl, settle down,
If you want you can marry…
Take your time; think a lot,
Why, think of everything you’ve got.
For you’ll still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may not.”
— Cat Stevens, “Father and Son”
One thing they don’t tell you about divorce is that it makes you question everything. Not just your choice of life partner, but life itself.
If love is the certainty that you have found “the one”, and marriage is the public expression of that certainty, then the failure of a marriage calls everything into question. You find yourself wondering how you could have been so wrong, and questioning whether you can ever be certain about anything again.
I have never thought of myself as a man of faith, and certainly never religious. Yet the mental journey I have taken since separation has made me realise my life has been guided by faith. Not the sort of faith that is expressed through prayers, worship and organised religion, but something much simpler – faith as holding an idea in your head and letting it guide you.
Read MoreTen things I miss about Montreal
My strange start to 2012 has given me plenty of perspective on my life, as well as helping me to learn what’s important in my life, it’s also helping me to figure out what things I value. Which brings me to this, ten things I miss about Montreal, in descending order of importance:
- Movie night and all my movie night friends
- The Writers’ Bloc writers group where i get my fortnightly writer’s kick.
- Working face to face with my coworkers