I’ve travelled over 28 hours on the bus in the past 2 weeks. Pretty glad I didn’t go to Winnipeg last Tuesday night. I wasn’t worried as I boarded the Greyhound in Edmonton late last night because a teenager rooted through my dirty laundry (and everyone else’s). And the murderer is police custody. I had … [Read more…]
Upon my return to Canada, I find myself marveling at how easily I am able to adjust to my new life (mind you, I’m not working yet). The traffic is regulated by laws.The internet is lightning fast. The electricity doesn’t blink off.It is dead quiet at night (and mostly during the day too). I can use my … [Read more…]
My final week in Tactic involved attending 6 meals at people’s homes, a farewell service after church, 3 days of medical clinic where we served over 400 people, many errands and sales, and my first soccer game. Far too many feelings and occurrences to record here. We flew in to Edmonton on Friday night with … [Read more…]
I got pulled over in Guatemala City for talking on my cell phone while driving. The policeman told me it was “contra la ley” in all of Guatemala – news to me. It is a Q100 fine. After comiserating with his companeros, he let me off. I think it was the Alberta drivers permit that … [Read more…]
Picked up Acadia’s citizenship card yesterday at the Canadian embassy. It only took 7 months. Next step is a Passport. Note too that her last name is just Robichaud, not Robichaud Reding. Hopefully, she can pose for her passport picture like this. . . . . . and not like this.
I´m in the Hotel Dos Lunas in Guatemala City right now. Yesterday I drove my former principal and his wife here to the capital from Tactic and we talked the whole way (as we had done the previous day coming from the capital). Last night at the hotel I chatted with a Quebecois working for … [Read more…]
After waiting 9 days of patiently downloading 160 MB each day, my iTunes purchase arrived: 1987 Stanley Cup Final – Game 7 – Philadelphia Flyers vs. Edmonton Oilers. I was in grade 5 and a new fan to hockey. My favorite players were (and continue to be) Glenn Anderson (9) Esa Tikkanen (10) Craig MacTavish … [Read more…]
I happened to glance at one of the new one Quetzal polymer bills on my desk this morning and was very surprised to see “CANADIAN BANK NOTE” printed on the bottom left corner of the front of the bill. I did a quick search and discovered that the Canadian Bank Note Company does a lot … [Read more…]
605 people were murdered in Canada last year. That’s 1.81 murders per 100,000 people. 5885 people were murdered in Guatemala last year. That’s 46.23 murders per 100,000 people. The difference is primarily due to a culture of impunity in Guatemala. The BBC article says that last year the murder convictions were in the single digits. … [Read more…]
The Fund for Peace publishes an annual report called the Failed States Index. This year it studied 177 countries and rated them on 12 criteria which polled social, economic, and political factors. A few observations: Canada’s three greatest weaknesses are shown to be: Mounting Demographic Pressures Massive Movement of Refugees or Internally Displaced Persons creating … [Read more…]