9th
Vancouver, a beautiful end of the Earth
Edmonton was the farthest west I ever travelled in Canada. Today I would venture to the Pacific coast.
France, The Most Beautiful Woman in the World, and my friend Rob Dubé took me to the airport on this very cool morning. France borrowed my Sears National Kids Cancer Ride jacket to ward off Ottawa’s subarctic summer. She parked her car while Rob helped me carry the gear inside. We parted with a guy-love hug. He headed to the veterinarian to remove part of his dog that makes it irritatingly excited. I passed.
While Air Canada robbed me of $100 for checking-in a small gym bag that I could have carried on for free if I was willing to hold up the departure line to transfer liquids between bags, I looked around for my sweetheart, but she was nowhere in sight. Present ID. Look. Present credit card… feel the pain. Look. Get boarding pass. Look, feel a moment of longing and… there she is, leaning against a cocktail-size counter looking at me, amused as I looked for her.
Meeting the eyes of The Most Beautiful Woman in the World is surely one of life’s great compensations.
We strolled to the security gate and shared a few special moments until the last possible moment. As I walked behind the glass wall, France could see only my head and shoulders. I faked falling. As I disappeared below the frosted glass, I caught a glimpse of her forming smile, fully formed, as I lept back into view. I like to make her smile.
“It’s Not About The Bike,” Lance Armstrong’s autobiography was on my in-flight reading list until my attention got tangled in the new in-flight entertainment system. I’m a movie buff, so “The Watchmen” and “The Reader” filled the space between Ottawa and Vancouver.
As I secured a limousine for the short trip to the University of British Columbia, where we would stay until Saturday, I leaned into the trunk space and the driver intentionally thrust the lid down and accidentally struck me in the head. ”There Will Be Blood” is a movie that didn’t particularly appeal to me. It still doesn’t, but it was my first thought as blood trickled out of my head. Note to self: Wear a helmet near cars.
For the rest of the day, I went for a 2-hour easy bike ride around the University, downtown, and along the shoreline. What a beautiful place, with the mountains embracing West Vancouver’s ascending suburbia.
Time to relax… Zzzzzzz.
