And Now, Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Program

Alright, I'm back. Melanie-land had a fun immigration for a while there.

So LAST last weekend Mitch and I headed to NS for my high school reunion, which was a great time. There weren't as many people there as expected, but it was fun to reconnect with some old friends and catch up. The whole thing was much more low-key than I feared a reunion might be... no need to justify my existence for the last ten years, desperately pleading my case. A surprising byproduct of the experience was the realization of how secure and genuinely content I am at this point in life. I expect and hope that life will continue to evolve, but I'm pleased to be where I am and who I am right now.

We spent the next day, Saturday, enjoying the company of our good friend Marie. Her home is one of the most relaxing places to be for us and it was especially nice to have a whole morning and afternoon in which I didn't hear "I had a big BM! I'm ready to be wiped!" even once. We made it back to Moncton in time to see the fireworks with the kids, which turned out to be a complete fiasco. Insert weeping and gnashing of teeth here. Happy Canada Day, indeed.

The next day a friend and I headed off to Halifax (well, Dartmouth, actually) for a rockin' concert: Caledonia, Carmen Townsend and the Shakey Deals, In-Flight Safety, and The Joel Plaskett Emergency. My friend Steve is the frontman for Caledonia, whose music you should definitely check out if you like to listen to good stuff and not crap. I'll be letting all you Moncton-ites know when they come to Moncton (which means I'll be dragging you to the show). The only letdown was that my friend Ryan, who is filling in for their bass player over the summer, couldn't make it. Der.*

Carmen Townsend was the only artist I wasn't familiar with... YOWZA! She is absolutely incredible! She's got this supernova of a voice that is showcased by a really unique vocal style. What with the blowing hair and big shades and big guitar, she looked like an A&E Iconic Women of Rock special. (And it was blowing, believe me. The most exciting bits of the night were when the wind would catch the underside of the big-canvas-roof-thingy, sending an absolute waterfall of icy rainwater onto the crowd pressed close to the stage. Tee hee.) I was très disappointed that she didn't have any merch there. Another CD to buy in September, I guess.

In-Flight Safety were alright, although to be fair, I think their vibe is better suited to a less rowdy kind of event. And Joel Plaskett was spectacular. There's nothing like small-town-musician-makes-good playing to the hometown crowd! Whoever booked Alderney Landing for the show was a genius -- JP's songs are loaded with references to Halifax, the Dartmouth ferry, the MacDonald Bridge, etc. Alderney Landing is right next to the Dartmouth ferry terminal, overlooking the Halifax Harbour, a stone's throw away from the bridge. There was even a freight train that rolled by mid-concert.

Alright, blah blah blah... took a few days to recover from the weekend and then there were a few late nights of editing. And a preschool beach party. I think I'm sort of back on track now. This week seems to be sort of a test run for the fall -- Maren is attending VBS in the mornings, so we're trying out this whole getting-ready-in-the-morning thing and Malcolm-home-with-just-me. So far, so good.

*Excuse the British slang... I'm currently reading Nick Hornby's A Long Way Down. (Same guy who wrote About a Boy and High Fidelity.)