RTF is on Vancouver Island, if memory serves. I thought that Soror Magna was in the US, but I could be wrong. Poor Lytton was the the hot spot in BC. If this is a preview of our future, may God help us all.
Dare I say Happy Dominion Day? I do, while recognising the pain of our First Nations, our collective shame, and being a bit bewildered by the RCC. It's not much of a party this year, so a friend and I are repairing to a patio for a drink.
Elsewhere, however, it is now known as Metro Day, after the buyout of its corporate sponsor. (Seriously, for years Dominion Day brought to mind mental pictures of groceries before anything else.)
Anyway, happy Canada Day (and Dominion Day to PG and others who celebrate). We are still a work in progress, but we have foundations to build on for which we should be thankful.
@Caissa The act that changed the name of the Dominion Day was illegal. There was no quorum in the House, and PET and Clarke on a gentlemen's agreement passed it. Everyone else fell into line and went back to sleep.
As a former rowing club member, I find the "Canada Day Regatta" is tin-eared. It will always be the Dominion Day Regatta, and Dominion Day, to me. While in ersatz law it exists not since 1982, it still lives in my beating heart. I'll try not to spill my g&t on you.
For the two interested, I was once asked by the Director-general for Youth Exchanges to tell her when Dominion was removed from federal nomenclature and stuff. At the 1948 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference it was determined that commonwealth states need not have the king as the head of state to be members (Ireland was in the middle of proceeding to republican status) which would facilitate continued membership by India, and that the term dominion was to be discontinued.
The word dominion had also become a problem internationally, as many of the newer members of the United Nations (particularly some Latin American states) claimed that this was a sign of sub-national status and that Canada, while a major contributor to Allied Victory, did not rate a seat at the table. And do recall that Canada had only taken on the title of Dominion as it was felt that the name preferred by the Fathers of Confederation, the Kingdom of Canada, would upset the US too much.
There was never a formal move to replace it, but from Saint Laurent on, its use diminished. Currently we have the Dominion carilloneur who rings the chimes on Parliament Hill, and a few funds and institutions established by statute.
As a further complication, some francophone commentators felt that: 1) Dominion was untranslatable, being a Norman French word to begin with, or 2) the formal French translation as Puissance had.... shall we say.... other connotations. A few of us are old enough to remember separatist slogans of Canada l'impuissant, with highly vulgar illustrations.
While its time has passed, I have a nostalgic liking for it and, later on today will commemorate our dominion days with the deep imperial purple of Empress Gin.
To me, "puissance" is a show-jumping term where the riders jump a couple of warm-up fences and then a high wall fence, which is set successively higher, and the rider is knocked out if he/she brings it down.
To me, "puissance" is a show-jumping term where the riders jump a couple of warm-up fences and then a high wall fence, which is set successively higher, and the rider is knocked out if he/she brings it down.
A nice warm-but-not-too-warm day here. Biked down to the Waterfront and had lunch in the Music Garden, then wandered around the Waterfront a bit. The city is really coming to life in that part of the world.
A friend of mine and I got together for a picnic (bread, olives, cheese, sopresatta, bottle of Kanonkop Kadette) at the Necropolis. Perfect weather and a delightful conversation.
I have not been able to find out if the local Orange parade will be held tomorrow, and the web has been no help as the LOL has no local web presence. The last time I saw it, perhaps 5 years ago, I noted a significant Black presence and, enquiring, found that many local Barbadian-origin folk kept up an ancestral link. Asked by my Irish RC neighbour if I was to celebrate it, I told her that I would pick up a bottle of the locally distilled Earl Grey gin from Dunrobin (43.3%!!) to toast the height-challenged interloper, for the sake of my long-expired godfather, a LOL member in Toronto in the 1920s and d1930s..
Funny thing is I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an Orange parade in Toronto. I do distinctly remember walking past a St. Patrick’s Day parade once in Toronto but I’m pretty sure that would have been a different group of people…
The closest I ever got to seeing a real Orange parade was when I was in my mid-20s and innocently expressed an intention to visit Irish Catholic family friends in Belfast right in the middle of July. They said they intended to be out of town that week and suggested I book for a week later.
Funny thing is I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an Orange parade in Toronto. I do distinctly remember walking past a St. Patrick’s Day parade once in Toronto but I’m pretty sure that would have been a different group of people…
The closest I ever got to seeing a real Orange parade was when I was in my mid-20s and innocently expressed an intention to visit Irish Catholic family friends in Belfast right in the middle of July. They said they intended to be out of town that week and suggested I book for a week later.
I saw the parade in Ottawa about 10-12 years ago, entirely by happenstance as it passed down Gladstone Street, near my muesli and grenola emporium. It was fairly small, with two or three floats, and only two bands, and about two groups of marchers in uniform. The youth contingent, to my surprise, was about half Black and African Canadian. Enquiring of a representative of the Gay and Lesbian Guyanese Loyalist association (only three members, to my knowledge and their president died the next year, with a fine funeral at the Cathedral), I was told that the LOL was active as a fraternal association in Jamaica and Guyana, and their scholarships and death benefits programming were appreciated-- Wikipedia tells us that they are very big in Ghana, and perhaps some of those there were West African. They still have a building in Ottawa, but I think that it is rented out most of the time to other groups-- they have a more active presence west of Ottawa, where the papal threat is still on the political agenda.
I should explain the discrepancy between my two posts on the LOL. The first was made after a look at my flickr stream, where I had posted a few shots of the parade. The second after a search of my correspondence files (why I keep these, I have no idea, but perhaps some social historian might find them interesting in the 24th century), where I retailled my dinner conversation with a former colleague, who was prominent in the Guyanese community. In short, I saw one parade, but there are two sets of related reflections.
The humidex is apparently wreaking its revenge for being confused with a humidor. Seriously damp all over today
In other news, Ms. Marsupial gets her second shot tomorrow. Finally. She was supposed to be at least semi-prioritized as an essential worker who can’t work from home, but then fell into the gap left by the withdrawal of the AZ vaccine.
The humidex is apparently wreaking its revenge for being confused with a humidor. Seriously damp all over today
In other news, Ms. Marsupial gets her second shot tomorrow. Finally. She was supposed to be at least semi-prioritized as an essential worker who can’t work from home, but then fell into the gap left by the withdrawal of the AZ vaccine.
I found the second shot powerful, as have had some of my friends, so Mme Marsupial may wish to indulge herself with a rest day or two, with her dutiful spouse in support. For my part, I will try out my new bottle of Earl Grey gin with a G&T, all in moral support.
Ottawa has been hit with monsoon weather, where one ploughs through the humidity. I have a new Hawai'ian shirt, which will make existence more tolerable, and colourful.
We're pretending in Sask that it's over with 61 cases today. Plus failure to count a northern, indigenous outbreak properly. The premier continues to be true blue to himself.
A small neighbourhood mosque has just been vandalised near here. The local Muslims are notably friendly and are a strong part of the greater community. They are 'us', not 'them'. This stuff and anti-semitism are things that I have no ability to comprehend at all.
Comments
Just read that we broke the Canadian record for high temperatures somewhere in BC.
Unpleasantly hot and humid here as well but not as bad as out west.
Rather them than me; I'm heading to Orkney later today, where I understand it's a very pleasant 16°.
It's still in the BCP.
Elsewhere, however, it is now known as Metro Day, after the buyout of its corporate sponsor. (Seriously, for years Dominion Day brought to mind mental pictures of groceries before anything else.)
Anyway, happy Canada Day (and Dominion Day to PG and others who celebrate). We are still a work in progress, but we have foundations to build on for which we should be thankful.
As a former rowing club member, I find the "Canada Day Regatta" is tin-eared. It will always be the Dominion Day Regatta, and Dominion Day, to me. While in ersatz law it exists not since 1982, it still lives in my beating heart. I'll try not to spill my g&t on you.
For the two interested, I was once asked by the Director-general for Youth Exchanges to tell her when Dominion was removed from federal nomenclature and stuff. At the 1948 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference it was determined that commonwealth states need not have the king as the head of state to be members (Ireland was in the middle of proceeding to republican status) which would facilitate continued membership by India, and that the term dominion was to be discontinued.
The word dominion had also become a problem internationally, as many of the newer members of the United Nations (particularly some Latin American states) claimed that this was a sign of sub-national status and that Canada, while a major contributor to Allied Victory, did not rate a seat at the table. And do recall that Canada had only taken on the title of Dominion as it was felt that the name preferred by the Fathers of Confederation, the Kingdom of Canada, would upset the US too much.
There was never a formal move to replace it, but from Saint Laurent on, its use diminished. Currently we have the Dominion carilloneur who rings the chimes on Parliament Hill, and a few funds and institutions established by statute.
As a further complication, some francophone commentators felt that: 1) Dominion was untranslatable, being a Norman French word to begin with, or 2) the formal French translation as Puissance had.... shall we say.... other connotations. A few of us are old enough to remember separatist slogans of Canada l'impuissant, with highly vulgar illustrations.
While its time has passed, I have a nostalgic liking for it and, later on today will commemorate our dominion days with the deep imperial purple of Empress Gin.
Might that be a metaphor for our Confederation?
A nice warm-but-not-too-warm day here. Biked down to the Waterfront and had lunch in the Music Garden, then wandered around the Waterfront a bit. The city is really coming to life in that part of the world.
At the request of @Pangolin Guerre, I've split off the posts about a possible autumn election and sent them off to Purgatory.
Back to hockey and Humidex ...
Piglet, AS host
(Autocorrect wanted to render that as “humidor”.)
The closest I ever got to seeing a real Orange parade was when I was in my mid-20s and innocently expressed an intention to visit Irish Catholic family friends in Belfast right in the middle of July. They said they intended to be out of town that week and suggested I book for a week later.
I saw the parade in Ottawa about 10-12 years ago, entirely by happenstance as it passed down Gladstone Street, near my muesli and grenola emporium. It was fairly small, with two or three floats, and only two bands, and about two groups of marchers in uniform. The youth contingent, to my surprise, was about half Black and African Canadian. Enquiring of a representative of the Gay and Lesbian Guyanese Loyalist association (only three members, to my knowledge and their president died the next year, with a fine funeral at the Cathedral), I was told that the LOL was active as a fraternal association in Jamaica and Guyana, and their scholarships and death benefits programming were appreciated-- Wikipedia tells us that they are very big in Ghana, and perhaps some of those there were West African. They still have a building in Ottawa, but I think that it is rented out most of the time to other groups-- they have a more active presence west of Ottawa, where the papal threat is still on the political agenda.
In other news, Ms. Marsupial gets her second shot tomorrow. Finally. She was supposed to be at least semi-prioritized as an essential worker who can’t work from home, but then fell into the gap left by the withdrawal of the AZ vaccine.
I found the second shot powerful, as have had some of my friends, so Mme Marsupial may wish to indulge herself with a rest day or two, with her dutiful spouse in support. For my part, I will try out my new bottle of Earl Grey gin with a G&T, all in moral support.
Ottawa has been hit with monsoon weather, where one ploughs through the humidity. I have a new Hawai'ian shirt, which will make existence more tolerable, and colourful.