Bob of Montreal
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
"Hooray for Our Side!"
In my first brush with the Canadian Health Care system, I called an optometrist today to get an appointment, letting him know that I was referreed by the opthamology department at Montreal General Hospital. Other than letting out a whoop "Hooray for our side!" he seemed nice enough. I had no idea what he meant by "Hooray for our side!"
So, we chatted for a while, and I said I was glad that he was just a few blocks from McGill, since that is where I work. "Hooray for our side!" Umm, yeah -- what department you ask? Physics. No, I'm not originally from Montreal, I'm from California. "Hooray for our side!"
Ah. I think I get it. The gentleman speaks English and perhaps feels a little embattled, and is pleased to interact with other native English speakers -- declaring a little victory at each opportunity.
I'm a little nervous at having my eyes worked on in this way. What if I mention how much I love the wine and cheese, as well as the genuinely friendly people here, and that I'm looking forward to speaking French fluently?
On the other hand, I read this weekend that the Anglophone health-care services are being cut back in Quebec City -- the second largest city in the province, which is something like 95% Francophone. So, perhaps it's not so surprising that Anglophone health care providers feel embattled.
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
First Visitor
I had my first dinner guest last night -- Matt Kowitt, who I met as he is the husband of one of my former fellow MIT graduate students, Casey Inman, was in town for the American Phyiscal Society Meeting. He came over, we had a quick bite, and went n a driving tour, where I promised to hit the three big food-stuffs of Montreal: Poutine, Montreal Bagels, and smoked meats. We went 0/3 though -- the best and second best places for poutine were closed at 11, as was the bagel place (which I thought was open 24 hours) and Schwarz's deli. How embarrassing.
Dang, now I've got a smoked meat jones going.
Tuesday, March 23, 2004
Annoyance at Inconvenient Facts
Yesterday, I gave a lecture on Galactic dark matter to my undergraduate class. Galactic Dark Matter is what we call whatever it is that's responsible for the observations of "flat rotation curves" of galaxies --- that is, the fact that once you get to the edge of the optical light of the disk, you can still measure how quickly gas clouds are moving from their emission lines, even well out beyond where the stars are all gone -- not just in our own galaxy, but in other galaxies out there, too.
If you've studied the planets, you know this is a problem, because the velocities of the planets *decrease* as you get further and further away from the sun, due to weakening gravity. If you want to keep the velocity constant, that means you have to keep adding mass at greater and greater distances -- well beyond where the stars end, and with no change in how this mass is distributed. The total mass implied is enormous, too, usually 10x that which we can see in optical star-light.
What was interersting about this lecture is that some of the students had barely concealed disgust at having to learn about something which was not well understood. I might guess that their response is simply "These Bozos. If they don't understand it, why do they teach it? Why don't they just spend the time, and figure it out?"
Sunday, March 21, 2004
Maple Syrup Season
It is maple syrup season. This happens at the time of the year when it is below freezing during the night, and above freezing during the day. This causes the maple sap to be drawn up during the day.
All the markets have so much maple syrup in them, it is truly astounding. There are the standard cans of maple syrup. There are also decorative bottles in about 8 different sizes, some shaped as maple leaves. In addition, there are maple bars. Maple taffy. There are "coronets" which are 3" long ice-cream cones (just the cones), which have maple syrup in the bottom, and stopped with maple taffy. The maple sryup is thick like taffy in coronets.
So, they also have these things called "sugar shacks", which are apparently where the syrup is made. But, people go there to drink beer.
Thursday, March 11, 2004
Black Winds of Death?
[Reuters] I don't think of myself as the militaristic type. Perhaps I'm too forgiving. We got hit, with 3000 killed in two different cities, but we invaded Afghanistan to shut them down there, and Iraq on the pretense of doing so. I'd think we'd bloodied them good and done.
But now, through a channel which claimed the double-bombing of Turkish synagogues last year, and today's Spanish train attacks (190 dead), we have a letter which says the "Winds of Black Death" strike against America is 90 percent ready, from Al Qaeda?
Again, I don't think I'm the militaristic type. Perhaps I'm too forgiving. But if these guys came back with the Black Winds of Death, and kill another few thousand Americans on home soil, then I think we've got to invade Pakistan, Syria, Indonesia, and any place else Al Qaeda has even thought of for a visit.
Tuesday, March 09, 2004
CAFS Strikes
The bold, militant Coalition for Action on Food Services is setting a campus wide boycott of campus Cafeterias March 16-17, to stick their fist in the face of the Man, who wants to have all campus cafeterias run by a single food service provider.
Two days with no lines!
Monday, March 08, 2004
The Stars Come Out
The snow melted last week from the side of the Mont facing my condo balcony, but today is a day of big chunky dry snow falling in a wind which blows it perpendicular to the ground. No accumulation yet, but perhaps because none of it is hitting the ground, it's just blowing by.
Saturday, March 06, 2004
My Apartment Smells Ghastly
I woke up early, and got down the the Atwater Market , which is well known as a farmers market here. The market is across town, about a 10 minute drive, with parking in the front. There are about 12 temporary stalls up front, mostly well-oiled vegetables for that shiny boutique look. I came because the market is reputed to have great cheese shops.
I picked up an aged mimoletta, a Black Roquefort, and "the stinkiest cheese you have." The stinky cheese is hooo boy stinky, and it sits on side table and smells up the place. It's just wet enough on top to cary that stink to high heaven. And it is soooooooo gooooood.
Friday, March 05, 2004
Missing Snow
From my living room, I'm watching the side of the Mont (of Mont-Royal) re-frost in brown, as the snow melts and the dead earth underneath reasserts itself. It's been covered over since I moved in Dec 13, but now, the paths are getting bare, and you can easily walk up the inclines.
After cursing the cold for many years back in Cambridge, I'm missing the snow. It's beautiful from the window, and I was never so cold this winter that I was even uncomfortable -- except for that hour I spent waiting for roadside service when my 3-day old car's battery quit on me. So what's snow done to me, that I should hate it so? It's become background decoration, and a very nice decoration it is.
Back at MIT, there was a member of the a cappella group -- the Toons -- I was in, Dee Donahue, who was from Santa Barbara, and who would gleem with winter, saying over and over how much she loved Boston more than Santa Barbara. I thought it was time to call out the white coats and big net.
Here in Montreal, the winter seemed very pleasant, even though it was one of the colder ones of the last few decades, according to the weather report. I did not miss the Pasadena winter at all -- and I mean, at all. Perhaps whether or not one likes winter just depends on how well one is guarded against it. Not living in an apartment with rattling windows, a 3rd floor walkup, no 30 minute walks regardless of the severity out there, kind of takes the edge off. Even so, the 2am saunters home from the lab with Lam would always be met by a dash of sherry before bed, and that also took the edge off -- but apparently not quite as much as it could have.
Maybe it's still time to call out white coats and big net.
