Strange Fate

       Yes, I had a fine education.  UAlberta, UBC, McGill.  Well known universities, sure to enhance my reputation...  And, nowadays the humble Canadian college is eager to gain the advantages of university status, which provides me with credit from Emily Carr University (once a mere college), Mount Royal University, once a college, (where Ralph Klein taught Media Arts, ahem...), David Thompson University of the Arts, in Nelson, British Columbia, and, of course Edmonton's pride, Grant MacEwan College, now also bestowed with University status.  I studied journalism there, so trust me, I am a well trained journalist...
     And, I'm eager to report on some peculiar trends I've noticed.  I had the advantage of being the progeny of two University of Alberta professors, both holders of Ph.Ds from Ivy League Universities, Columbia in the case of my father. and Cornell U., where my mother obtained a Ph.D in Linguistics.
     So, bear with me, for you see New York is home to these very extraordinary universities, and I spent time there, in Ithaca, where I was enrolled in Fall Creek elementary school in grade one, Boynton Jr. High in grade seven, DeWitt Jr. High in grade seven, and at a Free School called Markles Flats Alternate Jr. High in grade nine. I thank my lucky stars I was exposed to this example of American progressivism. 
     Today, Charlie Rose speaks of American exceptionalism, which draws scholars from throughout the world to American universities, who often go on to leadership roles in democratic institutions in their home countries.  This speaks highly of America's role in the world, and I try to remain sympathetic to this patriotic view, expressed by Rose and most journalists employed by American media outlets.
    But I fled Ithaca High School in 1974, to return to Edmonton...  Yes it is hard to explain the appeal.
    Nowadays I see Edmonton as "The Middle Path" , in Buddhist terms, where I try to avoid the hardships the world throws at me.  Ithaca had intellectual stimulation galore, but somehow my Canadian roots drew me back.  So I'm the intellectual who calls Edmonton home.  There's not a lot of company...