The Boy. 4 Weeks of catching up. Now I've covered a couple of trifles - like Hooters, overlooked the ridiculous details:
Me: "This is where I met your mom..."
The Boy: (Who knows better): "You know, She's been asking if I think you're still sane..."
Good. very good. Better because I know it's true and she's just cause, but, quite simply, I know that as sane as I am I must appear to be mad in an insane world. Which brings to mind the saying "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king...". I don't know why.
I've recommended him an abundance of films and books. He's finished Laclos: "Les Liasons Dangerous", Maughm "The Razor's Edge", Celine "Journey to the End of the Night". He's doing well. Film, last 3 were "Being John Malkovich", "Brazil" and "Withnail and I". His reviews, succinct, at 15 he still keeps his opinions to himself, he's reluctant to debate, but he notes: "I Think I've found your character archetype in the character of Withnail....I know I must say this after every film...". I'm somewhat offended, I like Withnail, but he's a bit over the top, even for me. Still, it's good to make an impression.
Week ?1 (going back in time a few weeks to days that are unblogged, written and lost and mostly forgotten...):
#1: The Flea Market. It's been a few weeks since I've been, miscellaneous trifles, a WW2 Tommy Helmet for the Boy, he thinks it's cool
#2: We start at the Market Collective. We've vague plans of going to Red Deer, meet Grandpa for lunch, boy calls, no answer. Hippies, local crafts, good Karma. We pick up something for my daughter, a ridiculous felted creature that somehow I imagine she'll like, locally made, expensive, but unique, art, it will be her birthday gift. We get our picture taken with it.
#3: From here to Indian Buffet. Same as every week, balance one's diet, a weeks worth of vitamins and minerals in a day.
#4: Off to a few thrift shops. And in the mileage we stop at a firing range and shoot off some 45's, a HK and SAM, swapping after 25 rounds. I like the HK, my shooting is much improved, most bullets hitting the target's inner 2 rings, I swap eyes sighting but forget to swap hands, hit target to right about 4 inches but I recognize my error, I might just be a great ambidextrous shooter...
#5: On the way back to downtown pass a demonstration in front of City Hall, lots of police, we get out to investigate. Syrian pro-revolutionaries - green flags: "Stop the killing of babies and innocents in Syria" vs Syrian anti-revolutionaries - red flags: "President... is doing his best, let change be gradual and keep killing babies and innocents....".
It's that black and white...
End of day....
***
Week ?2, a film about Charles Eames, ACAD, part of the Fine arts film festival, "Eames: Architect and Painter", worthwhile, if only because we can find these treasures at garage sales, local, they're not inaccessible. And their love affair, despite the trifling flaws, well, it was exceptional. A rare thing.
Midweek: A play at U of C, part of the U of C's Drama Fine Art's Presentation, the threat that if he doesn't start working harder, applying himself, this could be his university...
But, in favour, the theatre's, the lights, I have to laugh, how many theatres offer this? How long will it be before he realizes the standards of staging the university grooms him for? They should provide a single light, a derelict stage, they should hire people to throw bottles...This will be Drama. In the real world.
***
He asks me about my degree. English Lit, he presumes, and I correct him. "Drama". There's a look of horror on his face, the sins of the fathers...
"Not to worry. Dramaturgy, I was more interested in writing. And Psychology. But I've pursued neither, I can't blame my current position on my education...But perhaps we should return to Jubilation's..."
***
We're culturally fluent, a film, play, new restaurant, something new every week. The chore of the part-time dad, I reassure myself that hour for hour I'm still getting more intelligent time with him than anyone else, Mother, father, teacher, but I resent - in a way, - the expectation to forever top myself, introduce him to new things, experiences, no one ever did this for me, for anyone I knew. It's the new parenting thing, "Live for/through one's children", this is the new experiment, I'm uncertain of the results...
And this should catch me up, there will be things forgotten - always there are things forgotten, and the notes once lost are tough to recall...