high weirdness

I couldn't think of anything to write that would match this new picture so I went instead to look for a story I read about a few months ago. It's an old tale anyway so I don't suppose you'll mind me having waited a while to tell it.

Unexpected teleportation must come as a shock. Consider the case of Gil Pérez:
 
Señor Pérez, a soldier in the Filipino Guardia Civil mysteriously vanished from his sentry post in Manila, on October 23rd, 1593 and reappeared in the Plaza Mayor of Mexico City on October 24th, 1593.  At the time of his appearance in Mexico, Pérez was dressed in the resplendent costume of the Palacio del Gobernador in the Philippines, and immediately reported that moments before his bizarre transport to Mexico City, Governor of the Philippines, Gomez Perez Dasmariñas has been axed to death by Chinese pirates.

Since instantaneous travel from Manila to Mexico City is largely unheard of even today (given the state of air transport, somewhere along the line a flight would be cancelled), Spanish officials in Mexico were understandably dubious in 1593, and jailed poor Pérez on the assumption that he was a Spanish Army deserter.  He was also questioned unproductively by the local office of the Inquisition (which no one expected). 

Two months after his sudden arrival, a Spanish galleon arrived from Manila with (1) news that Gomez Perez Dasmariñas had indeed been axed to death by the Chinese on October 23rd, (2) that Gil Pérez had been seen in Manila on the same day and was positively identified by a witness on the newly arrived galleon, and (3) weirdness was clearly afoot. 

Pérez was then released; returning to the Philippines to resume his previous posting, and nothing important was heard about him after.  Considering that in the late 16th Century Pérez managed to travel 8900 miles in less than a day and deliver accurate information, with no understanding of where he was or explanation, I would say the absolute silence regarding his later life manifests an overwhelming degree of modesty. 

If subatomic particles can be in two places at once, why not members of the Filipino Guardia Civil?

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slow going

Some years (well, decades) ago my young son and I found a huge snapping turtle sitting on the road that circled Roger Williams Park in Providence. The serpentine lake that defines that park wasn't far but the turtle was very slow. In fact, he (or possibly she) was taking a breather, solemnly unaware in its reptilian fashion of the great danger it was facing from the cars that often hurtled along that byway. As it probably weighed 40-50lb there was no way I was going to try to pick it up. My son was eight and I wasn't going to let him try. You see I also knew they call them snapping turtles for a very good reason. They're known to be quite bad tempered when they're out of water and they can reach all the way around their bodies with their sharp beaks if you get too close - or, heaven forbid, try to pick one up by grabbing its shell.

So we stood and watched as it got back on the move - down the middle of the pavement. At least standing nearby we could wave cars around the thing. I didn't want to keep walking while waiting for the inevitable crash and crunch. Thankfully, it wasn't long before a couple of guys in a pickup truck stopped, guys with shovels as well as a lot of other landscaping tools. It took both of them working in unison with a shovel on either side to carry it from the middle of the road and down the slope to the water. They left. We left. If it climbed back out again it was none of our business.

Turtle stories aren't the most exciting ones but this one was good enough for the moment. Have you had a close encounter you'd like to share?

Meanwhile, another movie that made me smile that hopefully will do the same for you:

Jungle Brawl - Episode 1 from Lee Daniels on Vimeo.


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local events

Here we are having Victoria Day around here with Memorial Day in the US coming along next and how did I spend some time last week? You'd think I'd already have had enough of winter to last me for a while but I guess not. The two holidays announce the beginning of summer in North America but I was curious about some blues and blacks in my watercolor paint supply and decided to see how this drawing from last autumn would look in color. Just in case it's already a bit warmer than usual where you are perhaps it will bring some memories of frosty evenings. I know I have at least one friend among you who prefers the long dark.

There are a few things I'll definitely miss about living in this place if we ever do find a better one. That's not entirely certain since every building we've looked at is still in Halifax rather than Paris or Rome but we do what we can. Yesterday the city held a Victoria Day 42 km marathon race in honor of everybody who suffered shin splints, twisted ankles, and chest pain in last year's run. I thought it was very nice the more experienced athletes allowed Queen Victoria to win - then again, this is Canada and there is protocol to consider. She looked so sweet as she puffed along at the head of the crowd outside our windows. Her little diamond tiara was a bit askew but her young pages had managed to keep the train of her gown out of the dust and it was a treat to see the courtiers running backwards as they fanned her Majesty's glowing* royal brow.

The next thing to look forward to will be the annual parade of the Stanley Cup. Last year we saw three open trucks led by six mounties, all followed by a man in a hockey puck suit and a bagpiper. Big doings.

Have you seen any strange things either passing by or in passing recently?

* Men perspire but ladies glow.

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