Archives for February 2004

Twelve Monkeys

Talk about the times in your life when you felt really, really alive

• April 12, 2003. My wedding. It’s a bit of a blur now, but in the moment I clearly recall this unmistakable sense of presence, of being in THAT particular moment. It lasted for almost two days!
• June 6, 1990. I wrote about this back when this site was young. I was 23, in Banff, half way up a cliff when I realized that back in Montreal, my graduation ceremony was being held.
• Spring 1997, when I finished my Master’s thesis. I had delayed handing the work in for over a year and against all odds decided to get anything I could in before the deadline for a fall graduation. So I cobbled the paper together and spent an inordinate amount of time making sure everything matched the style guide and such. I took a taxi down to my advisor’s apartment, next door to the Notre Dame Basilica, and took a cab home, where I met my then-girlfriend. We went out for dinner to celebrate, and when we got home there was a message from my advisor and his wife (who were also my employers at the time, and great friends). They absolutely gushed about the work I’d turned in… and that’s when I sprung to life. I was embarrassed about what I’d submitted; so, in response to their call, I pretty much entirely re-wrote the whole 120 page paper. I was absolutely on fire; and I didn’t sleep more than 5 hours in 48.