Tabernac! It's been six weeks since I last blahgged!

Once again I have managed to reinvent myself, in the most charming city of Montreal. A fine North American metropolis deliciously painted in all things French, starting with the language. Montreal is a city that dares me to adopt it, something I fantasize about, but the jury’s still out on the weather factor..

My Southern California heritage has not prepared me for things like the need for expensive and cumbersome weather gear. And those worrisome stories of frozen boogers and eyelashes keep me skeptical, okay afraid, of temperatures that drop to minus thirty in February. (What is minus thirty anyway? Any temperature that significantly hinders the body’s ability to function can’t be healthy…right?) And as someone recently pointed out, Montreal is still snowing in April while much of the continent is well into spring. I’m not quite sure what to think about that...

For better or worse, I’ll be gone in December, so for now I am simply basking in the relief of living in a city that isn’t a vortex of greed and karmic poison. On the contrary, Montreal feels refreshingly neutral. People here don’t go out of their way to be overtly friendly, as Southern Americans might, but it’s not because they are angry. Montrealers seem to prefer a simple, practical coexistence. Imagine that.

For the first time in a long time, I can say that I feel comfortable in my surroundings. I feel a subtle yet significant sense of relief, my breathing is a little deeper and my awareness a little sharper. I am not frustrated, and this feels very, very good.

My respite here in Montreal will pass too quickly, and soon I will be heading back to the district for another go. How long I will last there or where I will go next is pure speculation at this point. For now, I’d like to make a simple toast;

To the love of family and friends, to making others’ lives a little more bearable, and to the ability to suffer confusion and emerge with renewed focus.

Salud!

LMA