The US presidential election will be held – or, more accurately, concluded – Tuesday, November 8, 2016. Whatever the outcome it is more likely than not that nothing much will change.
Category Archives: General
Well e-x-c-u-s-e me! (November 6, 2016)
I think anyone knows that Donald Trump threatens the sustainability of the Republican Party – quaintly called the “Good Old Party”.
Donald Trump (November 5, 2016)
There was a time when I practically prided myself upon my ignorance of political activity. Don’t get me wrong, I always – without exception – voted in any election, whether municipal, provincial or federal. But my lead-up interest in the outcome was token at best and it usually predominated the local municipal elections far more than the provincial or federal battles. Years ago when I began practicing law in Almonte in 1976 and assumed the office and swivel chair of the late Raymond A. Jamieson, QC, I was initiated to an admiration for American politics by Mr. Jamieson. At the time I thought it somewhat peculiar that Mr. Jamieson specifically preferred American politics but as I got to know him I learned to attribute the peculiarity to his own general eccentricity. Now – forty years later – after having spent the winter on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and having been submerged in the unfolding fortunes of the Republican nomination caucuses, I can see precisely what I imagine Mr. Jamieson so loved about American politics.
Day One – Landed on the Island
For the past several years we have begun our winter expedition to Hilton Head Island by staying in Kingston, Ontario on the first night of our departure.
Serendipity
The MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) ordered by my neurologist as the last level of enquiry into the cause of my numbed lower limbs and feet was scheduled at the Queensway Carleton Hospital in Ottawa tonight at 10:50 pm. As so often happens in circumstances preceding a planned departure (we leave for Hilton Head Island tomorrow for 5½ months), this unavoidable duty was seemingly mockingly set for the latest possible hour before we got away.
Weight Loss
This wouldn’t be the first time we’ve vowed to lose weight. The pleasures of the table are noticeably not lost on either of us. But we’ve decided things must change. The starting point was the decision to use separate shopping carts at the grocery store. This is symbolic of the divergence from the social element of eating generally. By restoring food to its narrow dimension of nutrition we have eliminated a myriad of dietary complexities and social distractions. Eating should after all be a highly personal undertaking. And if this endeavour is to work (by which I mean, if it is to be a serious enterprise) then there is no need to confound it with corporate cooking responsibilities and presentation issues. Just stick to the basics.
Birthday luncheon
My sister’s current husband has succeeded to endear himself to everyone in his extended family including in particular me and my partner. In defence of such effusion I should add that we rather admire him for having endured both his wife and his two daughters for the past 30 years or more, not always a trifling enterprise. In recognition of his stoicism we offered to spring for a corporate lunch to celebrate his upcoming 62nd birthday, his choice of venue. He chose a Vietnamese place in a sparkling new commercial blip in the centre of the City, a place located not far from where he and my sister live. So we agreed upon that and submitted to the reservation which he took the liberty of making for noon today.
Packing
This will be the third time we’ve headed south for the winter; the third time we’ve packed up the car and turned the key on the front door for five months; the third time we’ve abandoned family, friends and hearth to take up new digs for the season.
Will this never end?
Pending resolution of the US presidential election it seems at times that the entire world is in a state of suspended animation. On almost every imaginable level there is an unbearable resistance to moving forward until that event is accomplished. It isn’t even clear that the nail-biting will end on Voting Day (November 8) or whether it will only be the spark that sets the debris ablaze. Until then the election is on everyone’s lips. You can’t go anywhere or talk to anyone without the chimera of Donald J. Trump percolating. Meanwhile the anxiety about the election lingers universally, sometimes casting a shadow upon the entire globe, fuelling at the very least an examination of liberalism, isolationism and nationalism or trepidation about the decline and upset of the American Empire and the Grand Old Party.
Off we go!
Every second Thursday afternoon our housekeeper performs a cathartic purge of our residence. We make a point to get out of her way. Normally we’re gone by 1:00 pm at the latest. The bi-weekly event is an opportunity to go touring. Almost always we head to the St. Lawrence River – specifically the Ivy Lea Club, Gananoque or Kingston – because it is far enough away to keep us at bay for several hours and we usually grab a bite to eat late afternoon to avoid having to contemplate dinner upon our return.