It's a strange feeling, realising that you really are no longer part of a group. It's not a feeling I much like, either, as it makes me think of all the times I'd been excluded by my peers when I was a kid. I'm not saying my friends back in Ontario don't still love me, because they do, but I'm not part of their lives. What had been a 'great' idea, to have me join in to stuff via webcam has been forgotten, even when I've reminded them, and while it's not really that important, I guess, it's symbolic of something larger. Here I am, trying to cling to the familiar, in part because it's so hard to build a real social network here, and I'm being forced to move on.

The show is up in the Gallery, the artists have come and gone. I was, once again, the liaison and spent a lot of time shuttling them hither and yon. The two artists up from Toronto, John Greyson (filmmaker) and David Wall (composer), were truly delightful. I had a wonderful time with them. They represented, to me, everything I love about Toronto. Physical contact, quick wit, an expansive intellectual intelligence, an openess about issues, style, and generosity of spirit. Yes, on the whole, there is a coldness to Toronto, a superficial charm that is only a veneer to the distant and apathetic nature of the city, but these men were not like that at all. I laughed and talked with them in a way I haven't with anyone else since arriving here (Gareth not included). Even my flat, Torontonian accent deepened ('innerac' vs. 'interac').

In other news that won't make me feel more of a funk, my cats are awesome. Twee is a bossy boots when it comes to demanding things like attention, food, love - complaining loudly and generally reminding myself and Choco of his existence. Choco is still a silly boy and gets himself into jackpots, like when he jumped into the tub again while it was full of water. And he knew it ! What a dork. And when he got himself stuck in my chest of drawers. Twee, yowls terribly when I shower because it is obviously trying to eat me, but sleeps next to the tub when I am taking a bath. Both boys sleep with me at night, sometimes under the covers, which is really warm, and vie for my lap when I sit on the couch. I'm very, very happy that I adopted them, both of them. They are my little treasures in this remote and sometimes lonely place.