Cory Liddle
Sometimes wierd and tragic things just happen. What happened to Yankee pitcher Cory Lidle yesterday affected me in a couple different ways. Firstly, I am a New Yorker and am always sad when something tragic happens in my city. It also makes me feel a bit vulnerable, in that the apartment I just moved from was also on the river, though at a different spot on the island. My Dad lives in a building by the river. What if the plane had been closer to finishing a whole circle around Manhattan? On a different level, the images of a plane flying into a building, of firemen rushing up into a building and of New Yorkers worringly looking up at a burning building obviously brought a myraid of feelings to the surface. I can't speak for all New Yorkers, but I always had the feeling that we all sense it is just a matter of time before the next big attack comes. You don't know which day it will be or where or with you will be when it happens, but it feels a bit imminent. When I read the headlines: "Plane crashes into NYC building," what do you think goes on in my head? Thankfully, this was just an accident, and only two people were killed. Of course, one of them happens to also be a member of the New York Yankees. In case you haven't noticed, I am a big Yankee fan, so this feels like it hits a little closer to home and puts the sport in perspective. When stuff like this happens, it makes you feel a bit more appreciative for every day you have, and for how great your wife and life are.
While in Edmonton we spent lots of time with Sarah's extended family. I loved getting to know everyone and feel a deeper understanding of who Sarah is and where she comes from. I love her more now than I did before. The top picture is us with her Aunt Sharon's family. They invited us over for lunch and fixed us a great meal. We had dinner with her Aunt Peggy, the second picture. We brought some strange fruit as dessert. Have you ever had dragon fruit or horned melon? Dragon fruit, which is the pink and black one, wasn't that great, but I really enjoyed the horned melon, the greenish pulp fruit with a spikey yellow skin. The final picture is her cousin Deanna, a very interesting girl who works in the federation of community organizations, and her Grandpa. We stayed most of our nights at Grandpas and really enjoyed our chats and games of dominoes.
I am really loving my internship in the Canadian Parliament. I took the first picture while waiting for the bus last night, minutes after walking past Michael Ignatief, the man ahead in the polls to become leader of the Liberal Party and therefore the man who might go up against Stephen Harper in the next election. Earlier in the day I watched question period and then took part in all the "scrums" afterwards. That's the word they use to describe the huddle that forms around someone as they field questions from the media. Recognize the man in the 2nd picture? That's Gilles Duceppe, leader of the Bloc Quebecois, the party that has significant federal power considering they only represent one province. The bottom picture gives you a sense of what the scrum feels like from the politicians point of view. That's Lucienne Robillard speaking to the media, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party and representative of the area around McGill University in Montreal.
The other day I received this congressional certificate in the mail from Congressman Charles Rangel of NY. It's in appreciation for the work I did as an intern in his district office in Harlem this summer. If you haven't heard of Charles Rangel yet, you probably will soon. He's been in Congress for more than 34 years, and if the Democrats end up with control of the House in January, then he'll probably become Chair of the powerful Ways and Means Committee which is responsible for taxation laws. I must admit that his stances are a bit further to the left than my moderate opinions, but he is a principled man who represents his Harlem district perfectly. The final picture is of him speaking at Teacher's College in 2003. In preparation for his speech there this summer, one of his staff asked me to prepare a list of quotes on education for him to select from. I don't know what he actually said in the end, but it was fun to help him prepare.
