It's time to give this blog something it deserved years ago: a fond farewell.

I started The Point back in 2006 because I was bursting with stories, but had nowhere to tell them. It began as an exercise in writing about news and books for a couple friends, and became the public notepad where I really started crafting my skills as a writer.

Eventually I just outgrew it. No regrets.

Over the years, I was blessed with readers who wanted to hear what I had to say about Canadian literature, human rights, and big gay music. I really appreciate the support and patience so many people gave me to try my hand writing about these things. It's given me the courage to get published and start broadcasting. So thank you.

The most popular posts on here by far have been two short comments on my friend Ross Moroz, and his suicide in 2007 (here and here). That's probably fitting, since Ross was a friend, a mentor, a mean big brother, the cool kid I looked up to, and most of the reason I have confidence in my writing today. I'm older now than he was when he died. I'd like to think he's inspired me to be a little more badass, and a little more brave, to honour the gifts he gave me.

I think it's important to be kind to your younger self, and though I find a lot of the writing on here pretty overwrought now, I have my own highlights from writing for The Point. I held a Where You Live photo contest that attracted some beautiful entries from around Alberta and BC, and once wrote about Adam Gopnik's thoughts on the emerging model of the 'mindful' interactive museum.

From the book review series that started this blog, I think I'm most fond of my posts about Norwegian Wood and The Year of Magical Thinking, The Remarkable Maria, and Cry, the Beloved Country.

If you're interested in what I'm up to now, boots on the ground is the website where I currently host my radio and print portfolio.

Thank you again to everybody who took the time to read and comment on this blog. You've helped me burst out of my seed.

I'll get the lights on my way out.

I know I've been absent for a long time, yadda yadda yadda. This is just too cool not to share.

Labels: edmonton

So, I'm back into the podcasting game, this time with an amazing co-host and a brand new show. It's called Money Undressed and you can find it here, where there'll be a link to the iTunes feed and info about how to tune in on Trent Radio here in Peterborough very soon.

Labels: economics, money undressed, podcasting

Hi guys, thanks for continuing to stop by. I'm not back yet, but here's the official state of the union from Chris these days.

Labels: economics, the point

Hi guys,

Labels: podcasting, the point

Cowing to immense pressure from this blog, of course, Harper and Layton have relented and decided they would probably be sort of okay with going to the debate if Elizabeth May is there too as long as, you know, everybody knows they're not happy about it.

Victory! Further bulletins as warrant.

Sample future bulletin:

Casserole tonight! Saucy!

Labels: canada, politics

What a strange thing to be envious of Americans for the drama and excitement of the presidential race down there this fall. Whether people will be voting on the basis of ideas, aspirations and values or just on pure personality politics is up for debate, but at least there's something feisty going on in the US. Up here there's such a dearth of inspiring, visionary candidates for the election on October 14th that it's easy to forget there's an election going on at all (is four days in too soon to say that?).

Labels: bsf, canada, politics

So, after having gone through all the trouble to reason out whether to watch the opening ceremonies for this year's Olympics or not, I slept through them, and woke up just in time to see the end of the athletes' march. And then I missed the repeats. Twice.

It just wasn't meant to be.

I blame it on the time difference... I'm back in Alberta visiting the fam for a few weeks, and got to fulfill my one aspiration in Calgary this summer: to watch the games with my grandpa in his authoritatively climate-controlled condo (he's way more serious about this than those officials in Beijing, I assure you) and eat cheese buns. My personal highlight, of course, has been the men's diving. Everything after this is just icing on the cake.

Hilariously, my grandpa actually bet that our-man-from-Laval Alexandre Despatie wouldn't even place because he did so poorly in the preliminaries. 'He got too fat,' he concluded. Well, Alex, I'll admit you've put on some muscle since you were *thirteen years old*, but I'd say you did pretty well for yourself. Thanks for a great show.

And it is all a show, of course... did anyone else read this headline? '77 applications, no protests at Beijing Games,' reports the always credible Xinhua news service from Beijing. Shockingly, they report that 74 of the applications to protest at the three Olympic venues pre-approved for demonstrations were 'withdrawn after amicable settlements between the parties and authorities.' Two others had some problem with their application, they say.

One, apparently, did not meet the proper criteria for government-sanctioned protest, for unexplained reasons. I wonder what they could be.

Labels: china, olympics, politics

So my favourite thing in the news this week?

John McCain, trying his damndest to make Obama look unready for leadership, has put out an ad comparing the latter's fame to Paris Hilton's inexplicable celebrity status of her own. You'd expect the best response to come from the really rather eloquent, thoughtful Mr Obama. But you'd be wrong.

Perhaps the best thing Paris Hilton has ever done in her short, inexplicable life:

Labels: awesome things, politics, usa

A different Emerson altogether, but the similarity in nose profile is striking, isn't it?

Does anyone else find it grossly embarassing a) that our new Foreign-Affairs-Minister-by-default-because-no-one-else-elected-was-available-
and-another-cabinet-appointment-might-make-for-bad-optics David Emerson is tripping all over himself this week to make sure Beijing is absolutely clear that Harper means no offense whatsoever by not attending the opening ceremonies and b) that his man holds a cabinet position at all?

I've got to admit, the Conservatives here have a knack for timing. Who else could have had the balls to use the almost unbelievably stupid affair with Maxime Bernier and the misplaced NATO briefing to slip in Emerson as his replacement without eliciting more than a peep of outrage? Surely there are others among us who remember that this is the same David Emerson who unabashedly crossed the floor immediately after being elected for the Liberals in 2006 for a bright new career with the Conservatives?

Labels: canada, china, politics