Miryam’s Blog

Okay, so I realized I haven’t written a real post in over a month. How on Earth did that happen? It’s going to be interesting trying to remember everything that happened… I doubt I’ll be able to cover all that time in one post, but I have to start somewhere, so here goes.

My Reading Break was mostly fairly quiet. Sunday I don’t think I talked to anyone, and then on Monday I left campus very early to catch the train up to Nanaimo. I absolutely love that train ride! It’s so beautiful, and I can do whatever I want and relax, and there’s lots of leg room. I really think it’s the only way to travel. Anyways, this time I read most of the way because I was half way through Ysabel, Guy Gavriel Kay’s newest book. It was very satisfying, and quite different from his usual style. It was weird to see the word “iPod” written by him. It wasn’t quite up to the standards of his earlier books, but I appreciate that he’s experimenting with new styles and subjects.

Aunty Kate met me at the train station again and we ran some errands before going to pick up Cameron and Katie (my cousins). Then we all went and hung out at her and Aunty June’s. We had a lovely relaxed afternoon full of talk and food and tea. We picked up Grandma late in the afternoon and all had dinner together, then we got ready for the other guests. In honour of Katie’s birthday, Aunty Kate and Aunty June had arranged for a bunch of their friends to come over and share poetry. How cool is that? So a whole bunch of women came over (poor Cameron was the only male in a room of feminists, but when they found out he was taking a Woman Studies course he was readily accepted.  Some women had brought their favourite poems or poets, some read poetry by friends or partners, and some read their own. It was very pleasant to sit their and listen to all that poetry. Most of it was really good, and some of it was very funny. Some was very thought-provoking. I read one of my own poems, which was nerve-wracking, but highly satisfying. Katie also read one of her own poems, which was excellent.

Most of the women left immediately after we finished, because it was a Monday night, after all. Once they were all gone, we ended up sharing more of our own poetry with each other. Aunty Kate, Katie and I all read, and Cameron sang and played the guitar for us. It was a lovely! Eventually Aunty Kate and Aunty June went to bed and we set up camp in the livingroom. We talked for a bit, then went to sleep.

The next morning Aunty June had to go to work, but we had a leisurely morning with Aunty Kate. We visited Aunty June at work to take pictures and say goodbye, then we took Cameron and Katie to the ferry. I had lunch with Aunty Kate and then we talked for a while longer before she took me to the train station.

We always talk about such interesting things with Aunty Kate and Aunty June! We talked a lot about family this time, and what characteristics we share, and our heritage. We also, obviously, talked about poetry and literature and all sorts of other interesting things which are somewhat vague now in my mind, but that I know gave me tons to think about!

I had a lovely train ride back, of course. There was a girl on the train with a toddler. I say girl because she looked to me to be no older than twelve or thirteen, but I hope I was mistaken, because over the course of the train ride it became apparent she was the toddler’s mother. I was shocked, but she seemed so happy and capable. I like to think that she has a loving, supportive family taking care of her and her little girl, but who knows?

Anyways, the rest of reading break was quiet. I spent a few hours on Wednesday with Chris, and I know I hung out with a few other people, but I don’t remember very clearly. I spent a fair bit of time trying to convince myself to do homework, and significantly less doing homework. Sigh. Most of my friends returned on Saturday and I spent that night in Sara and Joelle’s room with them and Joyce, Devin, and a variety of other people who came in and out. We watched The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, which I loved. I think I was alone in that sentiment, though. It was a fun night, but a little heavy on the hormones on my part.

Andrew actually made it back in time for dance on Saturday and I was very happy to see him. He had cut his hair and it took me about three days to get used to it. He looked so much younger!

The following Tuesday Andrew and Sara and I went to a talk on abortion. It was interesting, but not as informative as I was hoping. It was mostly just one woman talking about her own experiences with abortion and as a nurse in an abortion clinic. Granted, that gives her a fair bit of authority on the subject, but I was expecting more of a discussion. Oh well. I enjoyed it, and we were still back in time to see the Gilmore Girls! As I recall, after that we ended up watching Y tu mama tambien, so I didn’t get to bed until very late. It’s a good movie, but full of sex (literally full!), so I give you fair warning.

On Thursday I went to see a couple of plays at the Pheonix (UVic’s theatre) written, directed, and acted in by students. The first wasn’t bad, but the second one was unbelievable! It was soooo good! Sara and Joyce and I were in shock afterwards - it had a very intense ending. On Friday, Andrew and I went to the Pride office and didn’t get around to leaving, so we were still there for the meeting. It was fun, actually, except for Andrew and Chris ganging up on me! That evening we were going to dancing at Swing City (there was a live band), but Andrew was tired, so we ended up going to the plays at the Pheonix again. We watched all of them this time (there were nine or eight), and I really enjoyed them. They were all very different, and most of them were very thoughtful and well-done. And it was worth watching the mediocre one twice to get to see the amazing one again. Not to mention being back in a theatre for a while (home sweet home!). Afterwards, Andrew walked me back to my building, but we were still talking, so we walked around for a bit, and then we went to bed.

On Saturday Sara and Andrew and I went into the city to do some errands. Sara was going to sign up for a first-aid course, but, unfortunately, she wasn’t entirely sure where we were going and we missed our stop. We ended up above the Gorge and went walking along the water and found a beautiful little picnic spot before ending up in Esquimalt. We turned around then and caught the bus back to the first-aid place, which was closed. So then we finally made it downtown to the Times Colonist Booksale. Book lovers, you may want to skip this, because you will be jealous. It’s a huge furniture store full of thousands of books that have been donated throughout the year. They all cost under three dollars. It’s a reader’s paradise! I restrained myself and only bought six books, but, then, we only had an hour. I got some nice old books, including a 150 year old copy of the New Testament in Spanish. No, I’m not Christian, but I picked it up and just couldn’t put it down.

We ran into my friend Phil at the book sale and went out for ice cream with him afterwards, which was fun. He reminds me disturbingly of Montana… Weird.

Oh, oops! I skipped all the drama of the weekend! I’m sorry folks, I’m about to get depressing. So, my baby cousin died. My mom phoned me on Tuesday before classes to tell me. He was still a month from being born. Needless to say, it was a rough week for me, when I wasn’t keeping myself busy. Then, on Saturday morning, Andrew phoned me with that scary sound in his voice, so I ran down to his room to provide what support I could. His grandma was in the hospital. You’ll all be glad to know that she is doing well now. Some of my girlfriends were also having some drama among them, which added to the stress, so all in all, it was an intense time.

On Sunday I went to my aunt and uncle’s who lost the baby. My other aunt and my mom came down to support them and so we had a family evening. It was nice to see everyone, but it was not what you’d call a gay old time. On Monday, Mom and I had dinner together at Pag’s, which was nice. On Tuesday, I skipped class to attend the funeral. It was very Catholic, and very tragic. What do you even say to that? How do you make it alright? They had him cremated, wrapped in a shawl my other uncle had brought them back from Vietnam with a teddy bear my uncle’s mom had made for him. They wrapped the box of his ashes in the baby blanket she had made, and someone was holding it like you would a baby, and it broke my heart. That, and my other aunt’s speech of remebrance, when she said that they wouldn’t have to worry about not knowing who he was when they got to heaven, because he’d be the one running towards them crying “Mom! Dad!”

So… Now that we’re all crying, I’ll move onto something more cheerful. The reception afterwards was as pleasant as something like that can be, and I got to meet my uncle’s family, which was neat. Then I went home and let Andrew take care of me.

On Friday Andrew and I went to another Pride meeting. While they can be a little dry, the people there are such fun it’s definitely worth it. Rene is from Mexico and he’s really fun, and I like speaking to him in Spanish. Especially because then Andrew can’t understand us! That night there was a fundraiser at the Salsa Palace so I went with Steve. We had a lot of fun! Steve is so sweet and enthusiastic I always enjoy time spent with him, and there were lots of other people I knew there. I danced with Spencer a few times and it was so fun! He’s a really good salsa dancer, so I just have to follow him and enjoy myself! I loved being there, too, because it felt so much like being back in Ecuador. They even played a song I recognised from my year there. It made me very happy! Even the skanky women on the huge screen made me happy because it was so Ecuador.

I think I’ll leave it there, and finish up last week later. I have to keep trying to catch up on homework! Take care, and send me and email or at least a post and let me know how it’s going!

I love you!

Mim