Je ne peux pas mentir; 2011 s’est avéré l’une des années les plus difficiles de ma vie. Une année de faim et de servitude. Une année qui a vu ma santé prendre une raclée singulière. Une année lors de laquelle j’ai été témoin d’opportunisme et de trahison de soi et de la cause sans précédent. Une année où j’ai eu des décisions difficiles en face de moi, dont certaines sont encore en suspens alors que d’autres m’ont été imposées et d’autres encore que je n’ai pas eu le courage de prendre.
Je ne comprends pas les gens qui mentent.
Je ne parle pas des « petits mensonges blancs » (expression empruntée de l’anglais « little white lies ») où l’on ment, par exemple, pour ne pas blesser. Du genre « mais non, cette robe te va à ravir, j’t'assure ! » (numéro 5 dans le Top 15). Tout le monde a déjà fait ça et, bien ou mal, c’est assez mineur comme offense.
Je ne parle pas non plus du mensonge par omission ou par origami même si j’estime que ce n’est pas joli et que ça peut être assez dommageable. Je ne parle même pas de l’acte de mentir pour sauver la face, pour se sortir du pétrin, quoi que je trouve ça décevant, une faiblesse de caractère peu enviable quoi qu’en disent les sous-entendus de certaines descriptions de tâches.
Non, je parle des gens qui mentent par entêtement, par conviction même. Qui, même avec les faits devant eux, indéniables, limpides, sont capables de te regarder dans les yeux (ou dans le téléphone ou dans le courriel ou whatever) et de te mentir, sans gêne et sans scrupules. Je trouve ça incompréhensible, répréhensible et arrogant.
Et je ne suis pas impressionnée.
Last year on this very date, September 24, I broke my hip. Again. I will not get into the details of that incident but if you are curious, you can read about it in this blog post and I have a photo album on flickr as well (warning: this album contains images of my x-rays, some of which I have been told are rather jarring so the faint-hearted may want to stay away).
Anyway, I wanted to underscore this date because, well, it is not everyday that one breaks one’s hip (especially at my age), not to mention twice, and so much has happened since then that it is kind of hard to believe. So I am momentarily dusting the cobwebs off this here blog to reflect on the year this has been.
Just a quick note to point out that I will not be putting any more time into this venue. Aside from the general lack of time preventing me from really writing on a regular basis, I feel that I am not getting much out of it. Not to mention the fact that most of the time, the stuff I feel like writing about ends up in my personal journals.
I will leave existing writings up for archival purposes, especially since an insane number of fans of Yao Defen as well as amputee devotees seem to like dropping by here. And who knows, I may feel like writing again in the future, although I would not count it. For those curious as to what is going on with me, my flickr is usually up to date.
Anyway, thanks for reading.
Gawd!, it has been so long since I have written anything of note here, it is hard to know where to start. As y’all have probably noticed, I am not much of a blogger and I most likely never will be. I like having it for an occasional rant or to point out something that I have been thinking about and stuff. And obviously, there have been periods when I had more time. But I am always amazed by the people I know (or know of) who blog regularly, tweet literally non-stop, have a full time job and then some, a bunch of other work-related activities, not to mention hobbies and such, a family, a dog, etc., etc. When do they sleep?! Anyway, just a brief update to let people know I am still alive.
Ça y’est, c’est officiel, le printemps est là et je dois avouer que c’est un soulagement.
Je ne sais pas trop pourquoi ; l’hiver cette année n’a pas été particulièrement difficile, du moins en ce qui concerne la température. Mais, pour une raison qui m’échappe en ce moment, l’arrivée du printemps m’a fait sourire, comme ce souvenir éternel de ressentir le souffle chaud du soleil sur ma peau, d’entendre les bruits nocturnes de Montréal filtrer au travers la fenêtre ouverte de ma chambre, de sentir le parfum floral des parterres et balcons dans la fraîcheur d’une fin de soirée de mai, de laisser cette première gorgée d’un mojito absolument glacé couler doucement le long de mon œsophage et atterrir, avec un léger fracas, dans mon estomac.
Évidemment, vers la fin de juillet, je vais commencer à me plaindre [discrètement] qu’il fait trop chaud, qu’il y a trop de guêpes à Montréal et vivement l’automne ! Et rendu à la fin d’août, j’imagine que vous ne pourrez sans doute plus me blairer.
Mais d’ici-là, comme on dit en anglais, there is no time like the present.
Or so I have been told.
Anyway, a lot has happened since my last posting and yet, not so much. And because I would not want the year to end without at least a quick sign of life, here follows my latest random update.
I [obviously] never posted the rest of my ambitious report on Rehabilitation International’s 2008 World Congress. Now I understand that y’all have been waiting with bated breath and believe me, I did continue writing up this detailed report in my [little] free time but never got around to finishing it and at this point, doubt I ever would. So let me make it easy for you [or me] and summarise…
They say life is what happens while you are making other plans, or words to that effect. Well, whoever “they” are, they sure got that right. I have been, to put it mildly, very busy, with work mostly, to the point that I have given up on making any plans beyond trying to find enough time to eat and sleep.
So, because my life these last few months has been mostly comprised of work, work, work, eat, sleep, bills, bills, bills, work, work but thought I should at least give some kind of news, else people think I was dead or something, here is a quick list of stuff I feel like sharing at the moment.
I have not been posting these last few weeks because I do not have Internet access at home yet (long story). I have to say, going without has been quite euh, well, bizarre. On the one hand, it does not really bother me. I have been rather busy trying to get my new appartment organised (or perhaps it would be more accurate to say trying to get me organised in my new appartment) and I can always access my personal email accounts from work. And I have been doing a lot more reading which is always good.
On the other hand though, no Internet at home has also made me feel a bit frustrated and anxious, like there is a certain void in my life. So I have not been able to keep up with my favourite blogs or other Web stuff and since I do not own a television, I have not been able to download the few tv shows I like. And of course, I have had to curb my reflex for searching for just about any word that comes to mind. Which I guess is not really such a bad thing.
I saw Michael this week at an event organised by my employer and contrarily to every one else’s reaction to the news that I am sans Internet (typically along the lines of “OMFG!”, “Hein?!”, “T’es pas sérieuse!” or “you poor thing”) all he said, in true Michaelivian fashion, was “good”. Anyway, since I am presently at my ex-flatmate’s doing laundry (because a washer/dryer is another thing I am still without), I thought I would sign in briefly and give y’all a bit of news.
This will probably be my last update for the year 2007, a year that in truth I can not wait to see end because, while there were a few good things, it was generally rather crappy.
So, with regards to the new appartment, that actually turned out to be a fucking nightmare. I will spare y’all the details but let us just say that when I went to pick up my keys after it had been emptied out by the previous occupant (who, it should be noted, lived in what can only be described as a personal storage locker) and saw it in all its filthy, broken-down, rat-infested glory (which the landlord, whom I have since baptised “il basso costo” or if you prefer “el cheapo”, refused to bring up to code), I took photos, lined up my horrified witnesses and promptly cancelled my lease. Which really fucked up my plans.