All-Inclusive Beach Holiday and Mid-Life Happiness

Unexpected for some one of centuries-long Barbados heritage, my physical constitution suffers badly in the heat of the Canadian summer. In the Chinese coastal cities I have lived and worked in over the years I have been trapped by air conditioning from May to September moving from air conditioned staff quarters to air conditioned offices and meeting rooms able to get out into the relief of fresh air only early in the morning or late in the evening. People like me should summer in Beidaihe or preferably an Indian hill station. But my conclusion in general is that it was evidently not in God's plan that red faced sweaty white people like me should have colonized the East, Africa or South America. We should have just stayed in the damp grey cool of Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales that suits our physical makeup.
So my idea of the ideal holiday would be a walking holiday in the Hebrides or traipsing through the Devonshire moors for a week or two. Baking on a hot beach by a southern sea is just not the thing for the constitutionally heat-averse.
But as I am on leave this term and my daughter will be heading to university in just 16 months. It seemed like a good idea to make a family holiday in the school March break and build some happy memories while we can.
So I spent about 20 minutes on cheaptickets.com laid out $4,500 on my credit card and here we all are at an all-inclusive resort in Bayahibe, Dominican Republic. It was one of the cheaper March break tours on offer. Our flights all leave in the middle of the night. We are coming back leaving from Santo Domingo at 2:08am.
Just two days ago it was high winds, freezing rain and sleet at the Fast-Track long term parking lot across from the Buffalo Airport. And now it feels like June in March here by the tropical ocean.
This is our first ever winter holiday. I have been to Barbados but in the summer school vacation staying with an uncle and elderly aunts who sent me the British West Indian Airways air ticket (their kindness and generosity never to be forgotten but that is another story).  I realize that going south in the winter is very common for middle-class Canadians but the whole thing has been a revelation for me.
For one thing it really is all-inclusive --- meals at any of about 10 restaurants on-site including 3 buffets which resemble my notion of the groaning boards of feasts in the great halls of medieval castles --- sumptuous spreads of entire roast pigs, whole fowl of all descriptions, seafood and for afters dozens of pies, cakes and puddings all this accompanied by unlimited glasses of wine, very good beer and excellent local coffee. Help yourself or a smiling steward appears with a fresh glass even before you have drained the last one.
There are more than a dozen bars serving hors d'oeuvres and all the watered cocktails one could want all the day and late into the night. In evenings each has excellent live music --- Brazilian bossa nova dominates for some reason --- guitars, flutes, gentle melodies.
Surprisingly I have yet to encounter a staggering, slurring drunk or morbidly obese person here although one would have thought this would be just the venue for them --- unlimited quantities of everything to eat or drink free to be consumed to excess if desired.
So far I have yet to spend a single one of the $100 of pesos I exchanged with a elderly Taiwanese gentleman who farms here that I made friends with on the airplane flying from New York City.  Mr. Lin gave a much more favourable rate than the Arrival Hall exchange counter.
The room is tastefully appointed, and kept very clean. The whole property is amidst beautiful tropical gardens. The beach is fine white sand and the ocean, still, clear and blue and so salty that one floats in it without effort.
So I lounge here on the beach in the shade after an hour of late afternoon sea bathing. Amidst the cooling evening breeze I am waiting for the sunset with my glass of vino tinto while watching my 7 year-old engrossed in his elaborate sand castle.
I just cherish the moment and wonder at how is it that we are so blessed that our life has become so good?

(Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cburton001/sets/72157626303655362/)

J.M. Snowdon and the Span of Generations

I was reviewing the manuscript of a biography of A.R. Menzies yesterday and found that my great-grandfather, the Venerable Archdeacon J.M. Snowdon (1860-1956), had officiated at his marriage to Sheila Skelton in 1943.   My great-grandfather had been rector of St. George's Church on Metcalfe Street in Ottawa, but went to Montreal to do the wedding at Christ Church Cathedral there as he had been close to the Skelton family.

My immigrant parents and I had lived briefly with my great-grandfather at 66 Lisgar Street when I was still an infant.  He baptised me and many of  my cousins including Judy Blasutti and Diana Stinson when he was very old.  He had baptised thousands of infants of 3 generations by then.  At its peak the Sunday School at that Church had over 400 children in regular attendance.

In 1891 Rev. J.M. Snowdon had been one of the many officiants at the funeral of John A. MacDonald.  This had not been long after he had traveled from Trinity College in Toronto along a rutted muddy road into Ottawa paying the toll to cross at Billings Bridge.

It seems like very ancient history now, but actually just follows the span of only one lifetime.

University no longer a fun time

National Post · Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011

Re: One In Four Students Are Depressed: Study, Jan. 24.

University days are not a happy and carefree time for a lot of my students. Many of them are working off campus to pay for the over-priced textbooks, fees raised high due to funding cutbacks and living expenses. They struggle to juggle their schedules to accommodate lectures and seminars in addition to the long hours of studying necessary to do well in my courses.

Very few have time for much social life. Being a university student is not as easy today as it was for me in the 1970s. And it is much harder to get a good job with a BA than it used to be.

Another factor that may contribute to mental stress among students is that a higher portion of young people attend university than ever before. Many are clearly unsuited to university life. For them, sitting through my 100-minute lectures on the intricacies of China's political system or international human rights institutions must be a subtle form of torture. Their too-often-befuddled exam answers and ungrammatical and confused term papers suggest to me that many would be happier working with their hands and learning a trade with good job prospects and good income.

Charles Burton, associate professor, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ont.

Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/todays-paper/University+longer+time/4160421/story.html#ixzz1C32JgaP0

Chinese New Year Celebration in Niagara Falls

From Drop Box

End of Term Blues

I am in St. Catharines mired in marking term papers today.  Most of them are not very good.  Some of them are so bad as to make me despair for the human condition.  And I have to explain in detail in the margins exactly why I have to assign a failing grade.  Marking lousy papers is the worst part of this professor gig.  Anyway fortunately it is only a very small part of the job.

Wu Shilin Reflects on Our Friendship

友情_吴时霖_新浪博客

    Charles Burton是我30多年的老朋友，他比我年轻20岁，1978年他从英国剑桥大学东方研究学院来复旦大学哲学系学习，师从严北溟教授，1981年离开复 旦大学，在学期间发表论文“道家辯证哲学思想”（"Daoist Philosophic Thought and Materialism", supervised by Yan Beiming），那时十年动乱已结朿，开放改革正在开始，在这样的时代背景下，我们认识并成为朋友。1980年他回国度假，他知道我家庭30多年分离的 情况，还特地绕道去台湾，在台北的电话簿上查到我表兄胡至法（三军参谋大学教授，上校）名字与地址，并由他带领去看望我的父亲，使我家断掉30多年联系， 间接联系上，彼此都很高兴。1984年我父亲在台北因心脏病故世，当时我在渥太华，形势不允许我去台北赴丧，他说你怎么不早说，按照我国风俗习惯于 1986年清明节前将我父的骨灰盒由台北经香港带回上海，一路关卡重重，手捧骨灰盒多次申报，平安抵沪，到了虹桥机场才给我挂电话。这样无私的帮助，我们 全家都很感激，子孙后代永不忘记。后他回加拿大于1987年获多伦多大学获博士学位。1983年至1985年我在渥太华大学计算机科学系做访问学者期间， 经常到他在多伦多住处去玩，也曾去过在渥太华他父亲慈祥老Burton家，他是一位医学博士，曾任加拿大总督私人医生，在渥太华有很高的威望。我在加拿大 期间，他父亲曾到我在渥太华住处问寒问暖，提供帮助，至今铭记在心。不幸的老人家于今年5月在渥太华去逝，享年九十有三。Charles Burton 1991-1993 与1998-2000 分别先任加拿大驻中国使馆一等秘书后任文化参赞（Served as Counsellor at the Canadian Embassy to China 1991-1993 and 1998-2000）。在任职其间，经他相邀我曾去他在北京官邸，共述旧谊。并参观大使官邸，还驱车到使馆附近一家咖啡馆，一边晒太阳，一边与大使全家坐 在路边共进以汉堡包为主的午餐，中、西方请吃饭文化差别，至今记忆犹新。Charles Burton现任职于加拿大多伦多Brock University 政治学教授。现研究国际关系问题，每年均来北京中央党校讲课一个月。
   二年前（2007年8月）曾与夫人及儿子来过复旦逗留四天（当时我安排他们住复旦燕园宾馆），Charles、我与陶黎铭夫妇蒙大山（曾是Charles 下属）的赠票邀请观看他与郭冬临在上海话剧中心表演的喜剧。我们戯说大山很会赚钱，你只知道做学问教书不会赚钱，连主持多伦多华人春节联欢会还要自己赔钱 掏腰包。今年6月份Charles Burton偕夫人与儿女去昆明度假，他单独一人定于8月8日--11日来上海寻旧，并逗留看看复旦大学的变化。我安排他住校内的卿云宾馆，他细端详，故 址换新装。寻寻觅觅，这里当时原他住过的留学生楼，特别是卿云宾館中心楼底层，每间房间都去看看，正是个中事，意难忘。硕师、俊彦今何在？

                     Charles（左）与博主（右）在客房的合影

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Wang Zhaojun Reflects on Our Friendship

周志雄：你在小说中多次写到人之间的友谊，如《拂晓前的葬礼》中的吕锋和田家祥，《绿帽子》中的胡大威和姜一品，《青桐树》中的刘树和文风，他们年龄都差不多，都是同学。就我所知，你有两个好朋友，一个是与你同过事合著过书的吴国光，一个是你的同学Charles Burton。一个人在成长的历史中，朋友的影响可能大于父母，可以谈谈朋友对你的影响吗？

王兆军：我的朋友不是很多，私交范围比较窄。我不是那种会来事的人，经常叫人觉得无趣。可以设想，谁会跟一个无趣的人交往呢！我最头痛的就是走亲访友。我 的几个朋友，的确都比较知心，所以很珍惜。父母和朋友是很不同的。父母是长辈，是两代人，他们天然地拥有批评你的权力，交流起来很困难，有时得被迫接受他 们的观念。吴国光虽然是我的学生，但他在我的写作道路上给我很多帮助，其中有些是批评的形式。他很敏锐，也渊博，写过一些评论，我从他那儿受益不少。他现 在是香港中文大学教授。

Charles Burton现在是柏罗克大学教授，做过加拿大驻华使馆的文化参事和政治处主任。在Charles Burton身上，我学到了西方人的很多好品质，尤其是英国人那种绅士风度。他们能在任何时候都不失态，那种顽强维护人格和尊严的气概，对我来说很值得借 鉴。中国人经受的苦难太多，有时会因为一些屑琐小事或小东西而失态。我和他的交往，后来也有过一些分歧，主要是我的心理问题，有文化冲突的成分，不好多 说。

总起来说，我珍惜友情，主张朋友之间平等相待。不同文化之间，虽然有先进落后之分，但没有尊卑之分，不能笼统地说一种文化比另一种文化好，朋友之间更应当 彼此尊重。有时候，我渴望有很多朋友，经常一起喝茶聊天随便说笑自由自在，但更多的时候是怕麻烦。我不喜欢人多的地方，但不能没有朋友。


http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_60e98fa80100g0xn.html