Island Life
Yesterday was an adventure and a half. Ali and I woke up at the crack of crow's piss to hit the road from Revelstoke to try and make the Tsawassen ferry for 3 pm. That's a 565 k journey through some seriously mountainous terrain. Through the winding glory of the Coquihalla, and a few coffee stops, somehow we hit the terminal at 2:34 pm. The signs leading in said the 3 PM ferry was full, but I knew that I could probably get on as a passenger. I had shifted a few essentials to a smaller bag so I could make the quick transition from the car to the boat. Ali drove like a champ and I blustered the mustard for the last hour or so to hit the deadline. I asked the Spanish-accented lady if I could get on the 3 pm ferry, and she said 'oh, no problem, dear'. I relaxed. 'Are you paying with cash?' she asked - 'Yep', I responded fumbling for my dough through guitar picks and keys. 'My favourite kind of person!' she said, laughing.
We did it. Somehow. As I stood on the ferry that moved across a windy, overcast Swartz bay channel, I thought about life. And I smiled. I Think That She Likes Me by Steve Poltz played in my headphones as I looked forward to seeing a few old friends, and one in particular. I smiled almost uncontrollably at how sometimes, magically, an invisible key can unlock levels in the video game of existence. In that moment, staring out at the water, and with Poltz's amazing droney, ambient tune in my mind's eye headphones, I felt like there was meaning to it. I'm not saying I knew what that meaning was - but I knew there was something. And that was enough.
My reunion with my friend Mand was an emotional and glorious one, filled with some marathon hugs, wide-eyed conversations and glance-realizations that you are actually in the same space as someone that you've missed. I watched her host an open mic and realized how much I've missed seeing her perform and hearing her sing. She even covered a Weakerthans tune. I can't wait to hear some of her new songs. We also caught up with our island-transplant Kemptville friends Brad, Josef and Eleni too for some Brad-birthday celebrations and west coast microbrew sensations. Laughs were exchanged. Hilarity ensued. I instantly felt as comfortable as I've felt in months.
It was a good day. And sometimes, that's all you need.
